A Call to Battle
by Rattler3
Summary: John Shepard has been brought back to stop the Reapers. He always gets the job done, failure is never an option.  Partial ME2 novelization, picking and choosing scenes and adding in news ones. Centers on Shepard, Garrus and Miranda.
1. Chapter 1

This is kind of a novelization of Mass Effect 2, except it is changed in quite a few parts with some things added. It's not all the scenes, mostly scenes centering on Shepard and Miranda, as well as Shepard and Garrus.

* * *

Miranda Lawson looked down at the heavily damaged corpse before her. So this was the great John Shepard. The one that humanity's hopes rested on… or so the Illusive Man believed. She couldn't say she was convinced.

She looked up and down the man's body, his armour already having been removed. Everything was still intact, just badly burned, sometimes down to the bone. Steam still poured off of him, leftover from the cryo he had just come out of. Wilson thought he might have to completely replace the right arm, but that wasn't acceptable. They needed a human Shepard. Sure, he would invariably have a lot of machine inside him, but the outside had to be as human as possible. Even the way he moved. She had basically unlimited resources at her disposal to get this done. She would find a way. She would make him better.

It's not that she cared about this man. He was just that – a man. One man. She didn't understand it. Yes, he was a hero, an icon. But what did he have that she didn't? Granted he had stopped the reaper attack, and allowed the council to die, allowing humanity to take its rightful place in the galaxy. But he was still just a man; not invulnerable, as she could see before her. She knew she could do everything he had done. Better probably.

She pushed that thought away almost immediately. That sounded like jealousy. That was one thing that was beneath her. She turned her attention back to looking over the body. She couldn't tell much about him from before, but she could tell that before his injuries he had a relatively large well-built frame, a soldier's frame. Now though… not so much, she thought to herself ruefully.

She heard the doors swoosh open behind her, and recognized the steps of Wilson. "Wilson," she said, without turning. She could tell he was startled by the slight intake of breath he had, not expecting her to recognize him without turning. One of the reasons she was the best, able to tell who he was just by his footsteps.

"Miranda. I've finished my final tests for the first step. I am ready to begin on your order." He stopped a few feet behind her.

She scanned over the broken body before her again. He was nothing right now. But she would make him whole again. She had never failed an assignment before, and she didn't plan to start not.

"The Lazarus Project is a go. Let's begin."

* * *

There was this damn voice that just wouldn't go away. He tried to swat it away, but it wouldn't leave him be. He was so tired, and he hurt so much. He just wanted to sleep. Let him sleep.

The voice droned on for a bit more, before heard a name. Shepard. That was his name, he realized with a slight jolt. He opened his eyes slowly, recognizing the voice from when he'd awoke before, when they'd drugged him. Everything had hurt that time, and it wasn't much better now.

"God damn it, wake up Shepard. Shepard, can you hear me? Get the hell up, you don't have much time!"

He didn't like the sound of that. The woman's voice was calm, but forceful. A leader's voice, a tone he could recognize.

He had a sudden moment of panic, remembering what happened with the Normandy, all his comrades, his team, his crew. He quickly calmed himself, remembering that he wasn't there anymore. He was alone in a medbay with someone calling him over the com trying to get him to move. And it sounded likely he was under threat.

"I'm here," he rasped out, finding his throat gravelly and in pain. He saw a bottle of water nearby, and grabbed it, slugging it back as the woman started talking again. She had an Australian accent, and although she spoke evenly, he could feel the adrenaline in her voice.

"About time. I wouldn't wake you up if this wasn't an emergency. Your scars still need time to heal, and your body is nowhere near 100%. But I have no choice. There's a set of armour and a pistol in the room, get into it."

He finished the water as he looked for the items. He saw them and moved over to them, every step painful. Everything all over him hurt. "What's going on? What happened to me?" he asked. It still hurt to speak.

"I don't have time to fully explain, but I promise I will tell you later. Just know that the security mechs have gone rogue and are killing everyone. I think they're after you."

He finished putting on the armour and checked the pistol, accepting her explanation for now. "Where's the damn clips?"

"It's a medbay Shepard, you'll have to find some. Make your way to the shuttles, level D. And be careful; remember that you're still healing. You took a hell of a beating."

He didn't reply, instead made his way out, finding a few clips thankfully. He instantly ran into a mech which he handily dispatched with a biotic shove followed by a single shot to the head. As he kept moving, the woman, who he still didn't know, kept guiding him until it started to get staticky, and eventually cut off as she reported the mechs had found her. But she was calm about it, so Shepard wasn't too worried about her. He had no idea who she was, and if he could or should trust her, but she had been helping him and had saved him, so he silently wished her luck. He opened up the next door to the sound of gunfire, and upon seeing a human fighting some robots, he gladly jumped in on the human side.

* * *

"Oh thank god you found me," Wilson claimed as Jacob and John came into the room. "The bastards got me good."

Shepard took a look at the man, instantly getting a bad feeling about him. He didn't know what it was, but his body language was screaming something off. "I see that," he said quietly. He watched as Jacob moved to help him. He hadn't formed a full opinion about the soldier yet, but for the most part it was a good one. He had shown himself to be capable for the most part, and had answered his questions frankly and honestly. A soldier's soldier, like himself. A man he could trust to not stab him in the back, at least in the middle of a warzone.

But this Wilson, something was off. He knew that he was the doctor who had been getting him together for the last 2 years, and that he was just trying to help him during that period. But he could already tell that Wilson was not trustworthy. A skilled man to be used if needed, but then discarded in a hurry.

"Grab the medi-gel Shepard, we have to get him out of here," Jacob asked as he tried to slow the bleeding.

He hesitated for half a second, wondering how he took a single shot in the leg and why there was only a single mech on the floor, before making the move to grab it and slathered it over the wound. Wilson instantly relaxed. "Oh thank god." He slowly rose to his feet. "We have to get out of here, fast! More will come I'm sure. I was here trying to shut them down but I don't think I can."

"Do you even know how?" asked Jacob.

"Well… I don't but I had to try!"

Shepard broke in, remembering what Jacob had told him about the other woman. "The woman, Miranda. What about her?"

"She's probably dead! There's no time. For all we know, she's the traitor!"

Shepard didn't change his expression at all. Something was off here. He had his doubts before, but now he was certain. Wilson knew something about this. "I don't think so. She helped me, without her I'd be dead. No, we're not going anywhere yet." Wilson and Jacob turned to him, confused. "You know more than you're telling me. And I want to know what it is."

Wilson paled very slightly, but what was more interesting to John was how Jacob seemed to react as well. So, the soldier could hide things as well.

"I told you! I was here trying to stop the machines! I don't know what else you want to know!"

Jacob cut in, his voice a bit suspicious. "I didn't think you had access." Shepard smiled on the inside. Jacob wasn't a total idiot at least. He should have said that right away, but better late than never.

"I… I was around here when the shooting started. I figured trying was better than nothing. I got shot trying to save your asses, and this is how you repay me?"

His tone was off, the anger seemingly forced. It was pretty clear now that he was the traitor. But Shepard didn't want to tip his hand just yet. He needed to find out who wanted him dead. Playing dumb suited him just fine.

"Alright, whatever. I guess it doesn't matter now until we get out of here." He made sure that he didn't come off too non-chalant, but instead trying to sound gruff and impatient… like someone who didn't care, just wanted to escape.

Wilson apparently took him at face-value as he started to make it for the exit when it opened and some LOKI mechs marched in.

It was a simple matter to dispatch them, with his shields barely flaring from their hazardous and inaccurate fire. As he started to make towards the exit, Jacob spoke.

"Commander, wait." John turned around, taking in Jacob's guilty looking expression. "You should know something. About this facility, who we work for."

Wilson cut in. "Don't! Our boss will have your head!"

Jacob shot him a glare. "No he won't. He was going to find out soon anyways, and if we want him to trust us, being upfront from the start is the way to go." He turned back to Shepard, who was appraising Jacob closely, his respect for Jacob wavering. On the one hand, the man was giving away obviously precious information. On the other hand, he was probably using it smartly, since it was a valid way of getting trust. But having told him that he was doing it to get his trust, he hurt the amount of trust he could gain from telling him it. The tangled webs we weave, John smirked to himself.

Still, he needed information, and Jacob was the source for now. "We work for Cerberus."

John's vision went red for a moment and without realizing it his weapon was raised at Jacob before he got control of himself and lowered his weapon. Jacob hadn't even gotten his weapon halfway up, and Wilson had barely moved at all in the span of it. John took a couple of deep breaths, regaining control as quickly as he could. Wilson was looking at him scared, but Jacob was just staring at him, evaluating him.

"Didn't see that one coming," was all John said, having regained himself. "I'd ask why, but I think I'd rather not know."

"You'll get your answer soon enough, I can tell you that much. We'll take you to the Illusive Man; he's the one who funded this. Billions of credits, 2 years of our best agents. Just so you understand, we put a lot into you."

John smirked at him before starting to walk to the door. "So I owe you?" he asked sarcastically.

But Jacob took him at face-value. "You don't owe me anything Shepard. Look… I just…" He stopped. "Let's get out of here, and then we can cross that bridge? I promise you, we don't want to hurt you. We want to help you. Just talk to our boss."

Shepard didn't answer as he strode away, though he could hear them talking between each other. It didn't matter what they said, they were Cerberus. He'd kill them as soon as they reached the shuttle bay and he didn't need them anymore.

* * *

"It's right through here, we're almost there!" exclaimed Wilson ahead of them, his desperation to escape quite obvious.

Shepard checked his pistol, aware that if Wilson was going to try something, it would be soon. He had no intention of letting Wilson get away, or betray him in any way.

As they had fought their way through the facility, John had reconsidered his decision to kill Jacob. He had decided he was going to hear this Illusive Man out, it wouldn't hurt him. Plus it may be a chance to kill off more of Cerberus if he so desired. Maybe even the head. Killing any of Cerberus was always a good thing. Wilson however, he would have to detain and maybe kill.

Wilson was fiddling with the door as Jacob watched their back. He heard Wilson exclaim a quiet 'yes' as the door popped open in front of them.

The woman standing there immediately caught his eye. Her skin-tight armoured jumpsuit didn't leave much to the imagination, revealing a well-toned body, with shapely legs and an ample pair of breasts. It was hard to not be distracted by how stunning she was. He quickly snapped up to her face, which had delicate features shrouded with dark hair.

He had no doubt that his reaction was exactly what she was shooting for with the outfit. It had distracted him for nearly a whole second, and he silently reprimanded himself for his idiocy. But it was hard to not explain it away as his body feeling the fact that he had been dead for 2 long years, and his hormones were out of whack. He dismissed that quickly. He never could lie very well to himself.

Wilson started to blubber. "Miranda… but I thought you were…"

He never finished, as Miranda pulled her pistol up and blew his brains out the back of his skull. "Dead? Yes, I suppose you did think so." He didn't even move as Jacob spun around and started to bring his weapon up at Miranda before he stopped.

"What the… what did you do that for!" he asked, shocked.

Miranda didn't answer as she knelt over his body, checking his pockets.

Shepard spoke up. "I wanted him alive." His voice was cold and angry. This made things considerably more difficult.

"He wouldn't have known anything," she replied equally coldly, not even surprised that he implied he knew that Wilson was bad. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you knew he wasn't trustworthy. I'm just surprised you didn't do something to limit him."

Shepard snorted. "What was he going to do to me? Another hand helping me fight my way out is better than him fighting me all the way."

Miranda acknowledged the point with a nod as Jacob broke in. "You've got to be kidding me. I should have seen it, but I can't believe you didn't tell me."

Shepard flicked his head at Jacob, and Miranda gave him a tight lipped smile, and a shrug. The kid wasn't stupid, but he definitely didn't have the mind for any sort of intelligence service. This Miranda however… she was a dangerous foe, John already could see that.

"So what does Cerberus want from me?" he asked impatiently. Miranda couldn't hide her look of annoyance at Jacob, who just shrugged in response.

"I had a feeling his conscience would get the better of him. It doesn't matter you know though. Maybe it won't even hurt."

She holstered her pistol at her side. "We want your help. Your free-willed help. All we want is for you to hear out the offer from the Illusive Man. I don't even know the details, so I can't tell you. A short shuttle ride, a quick meeting… and then whatever you decide."

Shepard just smiled at her. But it wasn't a warm smile, it was a bitter cold smile instead. "Right. You'll let billions of credits just walk out the door?"

Miranda shrugged. "Either you'll do what we want with our help, or you'll find some other way to do it. I know you John. I bet I know you better than anyone else you've ever known. Better than you know yourself. You'll do this with or without us, and either way our goals will be reached. So trust me when I say that you want to hear us out."

Shepard didn't trust many people. It's not that he didn't trust anyone, seeing as he trusted much of the old Normandy's crew. He trusted a few people he had known in the military before that. But the list was not a long one.

So what surprised him was that he trusted what she was saying. Not that he trusted her per-se, but he trusted her statement. She meant every word of it.

"Well then, I guess we better get going?" he said grimly, brushing past her and making for the shuttle. As he walked away, he called over his shoulder, "I'm assuming everyone who's still alive is already here. Don't suppose we have a pilot?" he asked callously, and was rewarded as he saw movement from the front of the shuttle. Well at least he could get some sleep.

He had a feeling that he'd woken to a situation he wasn't going to like. But there was no sense pushing it off. By the time Miranda and Jacob joined him, he was already strapped in. He stayed silent, barely acknowledging them as they joined him in the shuttle.

He gave a quick glance to Jacob, sizing up the man. He seemed capable enough in battle, with some decent biotic power. He was pretty sure that Jacob was dealing with him honestly. And he actually was fairly certain that so far, Miranda was too. But that wouldn't last long at all, not someone like her. He sized her up again with his peripheries, noticing that she was doing the same with him. Her eyes narrowed for a millisecond before even that sign disappeared. Obviously she saw him eyeing her too.

He'd have to watch his back. She was trouble, and he hated surprises.

"Well then Shepard, mind if I ask you some questions?" she started, as she stared at him full on.

"You can ask away, I might not answer," he replied, not openly hostile but not too friendly either.

Jacob sighed. "Do we have to do this? He showed he still has the fighting ability."

"But does he have it all?" Miranda asked back, her voice quiet and deferring. But he recognized that she was the one in charge, and she spoke like that to him to… well Shepard wasn't sure why. But it was some game she had going. "We need to check his memories and mental functioning. It should have been weeks of testing before he was even moving around much. This is all we have."

Jacob nodded his head. "Alright, fine." He pulled out a datapad, quickly scanning over it. "Can I ask what happened to you on Akuze?"

Shepard didn't answer for a moment, his mind drifting back to that hellhole. 50 of his friends died there. Only one made it out alive. "Reminding me of that doesn't seem like the best way to get on my side, I have to say. Toombs is convinced you did that," he said darkly. "I'm inclined to believe him. I sure as hell know what you did afterwards."

He was looking at Jacob, but what he really cared about was Miranda's reaction. The Thresher Maw's had been terrible, slaughtering the marines wholesale. He'd only barely made it out of there himself. It had been hell.

But Miranda didn't even blink. "It wasn't us. Not completely. I'm ashamed to say that certain elements of Cerberus aren't technically Cerberus. They take our name, but have no affiliation. We can't help that. But we keep tabs on those elements anyways, and as far as we know, the thresher attack was unrelated to us."

Damn… she was hard to read. Either she genuinely believed that or she was the best damn liar he'd ever seen. But he couldn't tell which.

Jacob had been busy scrolling down on his datapad, furiously reading. "I'm sorry sir. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories." The fool didn't even know the information he was looking for when he asked the question. Brawn, not the brains.

Miranda cut in again. "Let's try something more recent. Virmire? Lt. Kaiden Alenko?"

"Wow, this is quite the upbeat line of questioning," Shepard said, his voice even and quiet. "Someone had to stay behind. I'm not happy about that, not one bit, but it had to be done. That's what it took, he knew the price, and he paid it. He died a fucking hero, and no one remembers him. Without him, Sovereign probably would have won." He looked at Miranda, whose expression hadn't changed, then looked back out the window. "That's what hero's do, right? Sacrifice themself for other's only to be forgotten or shoved aside? Don't worry, that hasn't changed." He turned to look at her. "I'll do what needs to be done."

He saw the uplift of a smile on one side of her mouth. He had a feeling it was a rare sight. Still, it sent a chill through him. "Good."

* * *

Upon entering the room where he was supposed to meet the Illusive Man, Shepard almost slapped himself at his own stupidity as he looked at the circle before him, obviously a holographic link unit.

Of course he wasn't going to actually meet him. They hadn't taken his pistol, or any security precautions. With a history like his, they had to know that there was a good chance John would kill him on site. Jacob had filled him in about this Man. The head of Cerberus. They would have been right to fear John trying to kill him. He was still surprised how he'd reacted to Jacob and Miranda.

He stepped onto to the unit, waiting as it scanned him in. When it finished, he was greeted by a well-dressed man in a chair, scotch in one hand, cigarette in the other. In the background was a brilliant red star. But what drew his attention were the eyes. They were… cybernetics. Interesting.

The man spoke, his voice deep and commanding. "Command Shepard, I've waited a long time to meet you. I'm glad we finally got the opportunity."

"Illusive Man. I'd say I'm glad to meet you, but I'd be lying."

The man swirled his drink, before sipping at it. "I apologize for the trouble you had since you woke. I'm glad you can still handle yourself." He just seemed to ignore the barb Shepard had thrown at him. "There are some things that I just can't predict and protect against. People and things that want to silence us. But that's not unusual for people who know what you and I know."

Shepard almost wanted to just walk away right here. The man was playing up the situation, and obviously trying to subtly pump his ego. This was not someone he should be dealing with.

But he said it anyways. "And what is that?"

"That our place in the universe is more fragile than we'd like to think." He took a deep drag of his cigarette. "That one man, one very specific man, might be all that stands between humanity and the greatest threat in our oh so brief existence." He put his cigarette down, staring at Shepard.

So that's what this was all about. "The Reapers."

He smiled at Shepard. "Well, I'm glad your memories are intact. How are you feeling?"

Shepard almost snorted in derision, but held it back. "A little murderous. Being surrounded by Cerberus isn't the best for my self-control."

"You know, Cerberus isn't as evil as you believe," the Illusive Man commented, almost offhandedly. "We're on the same side. And it's not like our methods are that different.

Shepard immediately snarled at him. "We are nothing alike. Don't ever suggest that." He had done a lot of things that he was ashamed of in his life, but not one of them measured up to what Cerberus did. "I do what needs to be done, but I don't take it lightly."

The Illusive Man didn't seem to be moved at all by his words. "I assure you, nothing Cerberus does is done lightly. The spending of 4 and a half billion credits bringing you back was not done lightly. And that's just on bringing you back, let alone the funding we have prepared to support you."

Gah. This man thought Shepard could be bought, or impressed with this. Well, he supposed could be bought. Their 4.5 billion credits had got him here. And not a step further. "Cut the bullshit. What are the Reapers doing that made you decide to bring me back?"

The Illusive Man seemed annoyed at his abrupt and hostile manner. "We're at war. No one wants to admit it, but humanity is under attack. While you've been sleeping, entire colonies have been disappearing - Human colonies. We believe it's someone working for the Reapers, just as Saren and the Geth aided Sovereign." He took another drag of the cigarette, then continued, his voice turning more respectful as he continued. "You've seen it yourself. You've bested all of them. That's just one reason we chose you. You're the best Shepard. If anyone can stop them, it's you."

Again, playing to his vanity. And he knew he wasn't immune to it. Everyone could fall prey to compliments, even when they knew what was going on. "A war - Cerberus is fighting a war? Aren't you more suited to back alleys and valleys?" He inwardly smiled at the valleys bit – a reference to the Akuze Event.

The Illusive Man shook his head, standing and stepping towards Shepard, not taking the bait. "You don't get it. We are committed to humanity, in any way. If the Reapers are targeting us, if we're being hunted, Cerberus will do whatever it takes to stop them. If we wait for the alliance or the politicians…" he trailed of for a moment. "Well… there won't be any human colonies left. Or humans."

Shepard had to acknowledge that the threat was quite possibly real. In fact, he was willing to imagine that things could unfold exactly as the Illusive Man laid it out. He didn't know if he bought his story about Cerberus though. "4.5 billion credits, 1 man. That's an army there. That's almost a Frigate."

The Illusive Man smiled at him. "Not quite a frigate, not how we'd build them. But I concede the point. There's a difference. You are unique to humanity, to the galaxy. You stood for humanity at a key moment, a moment that has defined our role in this universe. You're much more than a soldier – you're a symbol. A symbol of what humanity is, of all that we can be."

"You give far too much credit to me. I'm just a man in the right place at the right time."

The Illusive Man shrugged. "Maybe. But maybe another man could never have done what you did while you were at that place. Maybe no other man could have even gotten to that place." He turned around and looked at the brilliant sun behind him. "I don't know if the Reapers can understand fear, but you did kill one of them. Which is more than anyone else alive can say. They must respect that. Maybe that's part of the reason they're harvesting humans wholesale. Entire colonies."

Shepards blood was starting to run cold. "I can't imagine the Alliance is sitting on their hands."

"The fools dismiss it, as pirates and slavers. Did you know they've already dismissed the Reapers as a threat? I don't know how they justify it to themselves, but they do. It's easier for them that way." He took another drink from his glass. "There's never any evidence from the abductions. Everyone is just… gone. No damage to the buildings, no sign of a struggle."

Now his blood was freezing. Something was definitely going on – assuming he wasn't being lied to. But 4.5 billion credits was a lot of money. It would have to be one hell of a deep game for this to all be a lie, and frankly he couldn't imagine what it could be.

"Maybe I believe you. Maybe I'm willing to do a bit of investigating. And maybe… just maybe… we can work together."

"I'm happy that you're willing to give us a shot. I'm even happier that you want to see for yourself. Freedom's progress. Miranda and Jacob will take you there; it's the most recent abduction site. You'll be the first one there." He sat down, stabbing out his cigarette.

"I think I'd rather have my own team."

"Your team has scattered all over the galaxy Shepard. Before you go off on a wild goose chase trying to gather them, why don't you verify what I'm saying." The tone was that of a suggestion – but the force behind the words suggested it was an order. This was not a man used to being questioned. He must be going mad trying to guide Shepard this way.

"Maybe." He thought back to the two companions he escaped with. He could work with Jacob, he could trust him. Miranda however… "I have no problem with killing. But Miranda killed Wilson in cold blood. I don't trust her."

The Illusive Man was quick to counter. "Wilson was one of my best agents. Miranda did exactly what I expected and would have wanted from her. She saved your life – several times. You can trust that, for now, she will do everything in her power to support you and keep you alive." That 'for now' stuck out like a sore thumb, but he did have a legitimate point. The Illusive Man was clearly a cold calculating bastard who he couldn't trust in the little things. Probably not the big things either. But he was right; their goals were the same for now. He could trust that he was needed alive for now, and that the chances of them turning on him so fast were low.

Still, he had to make one thing crystal clear. "So are you ordering me to go to Freedom's Progress?" The disdain in his voice was palpable.

"This is your choice Shepard. If you want out, you're out. But you can trust me when I say that, if you find this is a cause worth fighting for, if you find the evidence we're both looking for, that I will do everything in my power, and Cerberus' power, to get you what you need to stop the Reapers. Because that's all that matters."

He drained the last of his drink. "I brought you back Shepard. It's up to you to do the rest." He winked out of existence.

* * *

Shepard walked back up the stairs towards the main room. As he walked into the room, his eyes were drawn to Miranda as she worked over a monitor. He glanced over at Jacob, deciding that he could wait to talk to Jacob. But he needed to understand Miranda before he decided if he could work with her – or if she might have an 'unfortunate accident' on Freedom's Progress. That would be even more unfortunate, because Jacob would likely have to follow. And he hated killing honourable men in dishonourable ways.

"Are you ready to go?" asked Shepard.

Miranda looked up from her console, eyeing him suspiciously. "I'm always ready, Commander. Given how impressed the Illusive Man is, I'm hoping that you can live up to the considerable expectations you've raised." Her blue eyes bore into him coldly.

Shepard just stared right back. "Just do your job. And just to be clear, I can't have anyone disobey my orders when we get there trying to prove something."

Her eyes sparked for a second, but it was hidden away just as fast. "I'll leave it to you to prove something. I know who I report to, as long as you're loyal to Cerberus, I'm loyal to you."

Well that was unfortunate. She knew everything about him, so she knew how he felt about Cerberus. Two years of studying him… she must. So she was subtly saying that one step out of line and she'd put him down. Seemed ridiculous given the expense they'd spent on him. "On this mission, you forget Cerberus. If we continue to work together, then we can discuss your loyalty to Cerberus. But not this one, you follow my orders to the letter. Or your boss will see the last of me."

She opened her mouth to reply, probably angrily, but snapped it shut right away. "This conversation is over Shepard. My loyalty is to Cerberus."

He stepped right up to her, though he wasn't as tall over her as he'd have liked. She was surprisingly tall. "This is over when I say this is over Ms. Lawson. For someone who spent two years putting me back together, you don't seem real fond of me. At least the feelings mutual."

He was surprised when she didn't step back or push him; she just continued to stare at him, undaunted. "Don't think you can push me around Shepard. I'm not scared of you. And while I have the utmost confidence in your abilities, your motivations concern me. Only time can tell whether you're an asset or a liability to our cause." Laughable. He had nothing to prove to her.

"And what cause is that? Cerberus', or humanity's?"

"They're one and the same here Shepard." She finally stepped back, returning to her console.

Shepard didn't respond for a moment. His trust for her was dropping by the second. "We'll have to disagree there. But there's no sense quibbling over that." He paused, considering his next move. "I'd like to know more about the Lazarus Project."

She looked up at him, scowling. "You can access all that data from any console here. I assure you, everything has been unlocked for you." With the anger that she said it with, he believed her. She wasn't quite as good at keeping everything locked down as he'd originally thought. That was good to know.

"That's not what I want. I want your take on it."

Miranda glanced up at him, giving him a very brief sarcastic smile, before returning to her console. "Ah, I see. Trying to get a read on me. Well, I spent two years of my life spent bringing you back. I learned more about you than anyone should know about someone. I had to bring you back exactly the same. No matter how much I wished I didn't have to."

Shepard tensed up for a moment, but forced himself to relax. "What did you want to change?"

She looked him in the eye, not blinking. "I would have put a control chip in." Her icy blue eyes showed nothing, and Shepard found he was being drawn into them, despite what she was saying. "Luckily for you, the Illusive Man wanted nothing changed in you. He didn't want us to limit your… potential?" She tailed off at the end, making it more of a question. Either she didn't believe he had any, or thought it was a foolish idea.

"Well I'm glad he's the decision maker then."

Without looking up, she continued. "He's taking an incredible risk with you. I hope his gamble pays off, but frankly, I doubt it."

"I think he's taking a bigger gamble with you," Shepard answered sharply, causing her to once again look up, stopping her work on the console. "Putting me with an ice bitch like you is not the smartest way to get me on your side."

He expected some sort of a reaction out of her, but instead she smiled. "I'm glad you feel that way. I'm not looking to make nice and be friends with you Shepard. This 'ice bitch' has her priorities straight – the mission. If you don't like me, that's fine."

She stepped up close to him like he had with her earlier. She seductively traced her hands across his body as she continued. "I don't have patience for incompetence or recklessness or heroes. I'll complete this mission because of you, or in spite of you. I don't really give a damn. I'll follow your orders, and I'll follow you into battle. But my trust? Well that you have to earn." Shepard was a bit distracted by her wandering hands, but as soon as they disappeared as she stepped back, he was with it. She was definitely good at playing the femme fatale.

"I think you've got the trust thing wrong Ms. Lawson. Either way, I'm going to ask this again. You follow MY orders on this mission, regardless of what you think is right for Cerberus."

"No."

Shepard shrugged, and turned to walk towards Jacob. "Great, I'll see you when I get back from Freedom's Progress. Jacob, let's go." The soldier looked over to him from where he was looking out at space. He nodded, ready to go.

Behind him he heard shuffling. "You're not going without me. I have the shuttle codes; and the Illusive M…"  
Shepard cut her off. "Ms. Lawson, let's not get into this. You need me. I don't need you. What do you think your boss will do when I tell him the reason we're here and not going to Freedom's Progress."

She stared at him. He stared right back. Jacob wisely said nothing, but watched in silence.

"I'm loyal to Cerberus Shepard," Miranda started, her voice low. "I won't betray them, I owe them too much."

"I didn't ask you to betray them. I asked you to follow me. Cerberus wants me. Prove that I can trust Cerberus, that I can trust you. You'll be loyal to Cerberus by getting me on your side, right?" The last part he said with a smirk at her.

She bore into him a moment longer, before glancing at Jacob. "This one mission." She said darkly, emphasizing each word. "The moment I step back onto that shuttle, I might have to kill you for what you do. But on the ground…" she left the rest unsaid.

He was genuinely surprised. He thought she would stand her ground, and he'd be able to get her removed from his side. He had mixed feelings about that. She was dangerous to him, but she was clearly a capable fighter and would be an asset to his team if loyal. The fact that she was willing to compromise on this was a good sign, and he suspected she was being honest. Maybe she wouldn't need to have an accident on Freedom's progress. She was a formidable enough opponent, but he had ways of neutralizing biotics. And he was very good with a knife. "Good enough. Go prep the shuttle then; I need to speak with Jacob for a moment. We won't be long."

Her eyes kept staring at him, and he wasn't sure she was going to listen, before she moved past him towards the shuttle, her eyes not leaving his until she was pass. For some reason, it kept coming back to her eyes. There was something about them…

He didn't like the power they seemed to have.

* * *

Thanks for Reading.


	2. Chapter 2

To be clear, this Shepard is a Paragade, with more of an emphasis on the Paragon side. Imagine how you would react to being surrounded by an organization you hate. I'd be pretty damn 'renegade' towards them. Also, this Shepard isn't really a class, but he's closest to a soldier, just has some limited biotics.

* * *

The YMIR heavy mech fell at last, the sustained fire from his team at last being too much for it.

He had to admit that he was very, very impressed with Miranda now. On the shuttle out here, he had asked her about her qualifications, and had literally rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of her claims. But he didn't doubt her anymore. She was agile, an excellent marksman and her biotics were among some of the strongest she had ever seen. And she did have quite an eye for tactics. Regardless of what he thought of her personally, she was someone he could definitely work with professionally. The two of them combined were an incredible force, and although Jacob wasn't anywhere near there class, he was still impressed with the heart he showed, throwing himself right into the fray at will.

"Shepard, I'm tending to the wounded, go look after Veetor." Tali's voice came strong over the radio, though there was fear in her tone. She was undoubtedly worried about her men, who had been mowed down stupidly. While he wasn't too sad that Tali's team were injured by their own incompetence, he was glad that Tali wasn't among the wounded. He liked the fiery quarrian, considered her like a little sister. She was a good friend who he knew he could trust; a badly needed reminder of the good people he used to be surrounded by. At the same time, that reminder just made him more resentful of what he was left with now.

He hacked open the door to the control room quickly, Miranda and Jacob immediately bursting into the room. "Easy. I got this," he said quietly as he stepped in, starting to hear the Quarrian speak.

He listened as Veetor repeated his chant. Whatever had come really freaked him out. "Veetor?" he asked, but the quarrian just ignored him. "Veetor, we're here to help. The… monsters, the swarm as you call them. They're gone." He was careful to keep his tone neutral with a hint of comfort.

Veetor still didn't respond. Miranda huffed with annoyance beside him, starting to step up to Veetor, her gun raised. "Don't," Shepard started dangerously. She turned to him angrily, but quickly subdued herself without him having to do a thing.

He opened up his omni-tool, quickly resetting the monitors. Veetor stopped, and then turned to them. "Humans? How?" he asked, confused.

Jacob spoke up, surprising Shepard. "We're here to help. To rescue you." Ah, Jacob knew how Shepard operated and was trying to earn his respect. Of course. He glanced over at Jacob. Or maybe not; he didn't need to be so cynical about everyone. Jacob didn't think like Miranda or even himself. He was treating Veetor like this only to maximize the info he could get out of him. Jacob might genuinely want to help.

"But the monsters, the swarms. How did they not find you?"

"We came later, we just got here," replied Shepard. "What were the monsters like Veetor?" he asked, his voice soft and comforting.

He turned back to the controls, activating a few monitors. Video started rolling.

Miranda stepped forward. "Looks like surveillance footage. He must have put it together." She took another step forward, as did Jacob. The monitor showed little swarms of bugs in a few places, and then large human sized bugs walking around, collecting frozen humans into pods and carting them away. "These look like… collectors. Jacob?" she continued, asking for backup.

He nodded. "Definitely collectors."

Shepard frowned. Not much was known about the Collectors. He only had the briefest of knowledge about them. "I thought they kept to themselves."

"Yea, they do. Whenever they do want slaves, they work through intermediaries. And they don't gather such numbers, or an individual species. If they're involved with the Reapers though… that changes everything," answered Miranda.

The humans on screen were all frozen still. "That's some hell of a technological advantage they have if they can disable a whole settlement at once. I wonder how?" asked Jacob.

"The swarms," Veetor answered quickly. "They sting, they bite, they freeze."

"Jeesuz," whispered Shepard. What if the colonists were still conscious? The horror they must be feeling. "What do we know about the collectors?" He himself knew next to nothing. The alliance had known squat about them.  
"Not much. Nothing really. The real question here is why are they abducting humans? What are they after?"

Jacob replied to her right away. "Maybe the Illusive Man can figure it out?"

Shepard resisted the urge to snort. The Illusive Man had known. He didn't know how he knew that, but he was positive. But it was better to not let his compatriots know. He wasn't surprised that Miranda hadn't known even if the Illusive Man had. He would have wanted her reactions to be genuine.

"Veetor," he began quietly. "Why didn't the collectors take you?"

"Couldn't find. Hid, and they never found," he responded sharply.

Jacob sighed. "His enviro-suit?"

"Or maybe it was technology that was specific to detecting humans. We are the only ones getting hit after all," supplied Miranda.

Shepard ignored their guesses. Speculation was pointless, and he already regretted asking the question. "Veetor, what happened next?"

"They took them to the ship and flew away. But they'll be back. No one escapes. No one…" he trailed off, his words becoming incoherent mumbles as he slipped off into some sort of a delusion.

He kneeled down next to Veetor. "Thank you for answering our questions Veetor. Don't worry, you won't be around if they come back. You'll be safe."

He came back to them. "I studied them! All the data, on my omni tool. Everything I could gather."

Miranda immediately jumped in close. "We need to get this data to the Illusive Man. Grab the quarrian Jacob, I'll radio the shuttle and we'll get out of here."

Before he could say anything, Tali interjected angrily. "WHAT? Veetor is injured; he needs treatment, not an interrogation." Shepard turned to look at Tali, her eyes heated.

Jacob stepped forward, hands out. "Look, we won't hurt him. We'll look after him, but we just need to ask him a few questions. After we're done, we'll return him unharmed."

But that didn't placate her at all, and then Miranda jumped in. "Your people already betrayed us once. If we give him up to you, we won't get the intel we need to stop these attacks."

Tali cut back rapidly. "Prazza was an idiot, he deserved what he got. You're welcome to the omni-tool. That should be all the data you need. Veetor needs help from his people. From us." Shepard could see that she had her hand next to her weapon, while Miranda still had her weapon in her hand.

Things could explode here, and go very badly. He was fairly certain Tali would be slaughtered before he could protect her, and then he'd have to kill Miranda and Jacob. "Tali, wait. There's no reason you both can't come with us. That way you can make sure Veetor is looked after, and we can get the data we need. Plus, I could use your help. I could use a friendly face and a capable engineer."

She glanced at him, and some of the anger drained from her. "Thank you Shepard, but I can't. I have a mission and responsibilities. They're too important. And one of those missions is getting Veetor home."

Shepard nodded, stepping closer to Tali. "Ok then Tali. Take him home, he needs care. Jacob, get his omni-tool, then escort Tali and Veetor to her shuttle. Miranda, go grab our shuttle and pull it in closer." He returned his attention to Tali. "If he ever can tell you anything useful, please send it to me?"

Miranda turned to him as Jacob started towards Veetor to ask for his omni-tool. "Belay that Jacob. Shepard, you can't do this. We need his intel." Jacob stopped, hesitating as he looked towards his two superiors.

"Ms. Lawson," he started dangerously as he stared her down. His rifle was on his back, and his pistol was still locked into his holster, while she had her weapon out. He was glad he was only 4 feet out from her, since his best bet would be his knife. Without taking his eyes off of Miranda, he saw that Jacob had turned back to them, though his weapon was away. He knew that if he moved on Miranda, Tali would handle Jacob.

"I can't let you risk all of humanity for one quarrian Shepard," she replied, coldly. "I don't want to take the quarrian, but we have to."

"Lawson, stand down," he strained loudly. "This is your only warning."

Tali wisely stayed silent, not even shifting. Jacob likewise. Both weren't stupid, knowing who the 2 heavy hitters were in the room.

The staring continued, Miranda working her jaw, Shepard simply staring coldly.

Finally, Miranda spoke. "Sir." She nodded, and very slowly holstered her machine gun. "I'll go get the shuttle."

He could actually hear Jacob sigh in relief, while Tali seemed to ease up. Miranda turned and walked to the exit, but Shepard didn't stop watching her closely until she disappeared out the door. The adrenaline still soaring through his veins, he was almost disappointed she hadn't tried something. It would be easier if she were dead.

Veetor looked distressed over what had almost happened. "Tali, can you get Veetor's omni tool and give it to Jacob? Then we'll help you get your men to the shuttle."

"Only one of them survived, and he's already on his way back to the shuttle," she replied mournfully. "But I'll get the tool." She moved quickly to grab the tool while Shepard downloaded everything he could from the central computer.

When he was finished, Tali was waiting. "I'm glad you're the one still giving orders Shepard… even if not immediately. You had me worried there." She gave him a hug. "Good luck. If he tells me anything, I'll send it along right away." Just before she released, she dropped her volume. "Watch your back."

She turned and walked out.

Jacob was still standing there, waiting. When he didn't say anything, Shepard spoke. "Yes?"

He hesitated. "Sir… I realize you don't trust Miranda. But believe me when I say that she really is just looking out for humanity. She just doesn't see things the same as you do."

"Well she's going to have to if she wants to work with me," John replied. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

"He's dangerous, he's reckless, and he is far too idealistic. John Shepard is not the man we want for this mission," Miranda said angrily, staring at the Illusive Man through the holoprojector.

But as usual, the Illusive Man was non-phased by her outburst. "He's also the best at what he does. He always gets the job done, you've seen his record. These are all things we knew, and they are all a part of what we needed from him."

"But he let the Quarrian go!" she explained frustrated. "I almost killed him over that, I was this close to it, and he never reacted."

He just smiled at her. "You mean he almost killed you. Miranda, you're very talented, my best agent. But he was undoubtedly a hairsbreadth from killing you."

She almost snarled back at him at how ridiculous that was. She had a gun out, he was unarmed. But she held back. "Sir. I think the story is more than the man. He's a fantastic warrior, an ok leader… but not a hero. I'm just saying, I should be the leader on this mission."

"You're blinded here Miranda, and you're underestimating him. You're letting your personal issues get in the way."

"There's nothing personal going on here. I'm stating fact. Frankly, I'm not sure he'll have me on my team anymore. He doesn't trust me, and that's another issue."

The Illusive Man turned his chair away. "You have your orders Miranda. If he won't take you, then you're gone. So get on his good side. In the meantime, see to the ship. Make sure that we're ready for a good presentation, it might help his respect of us. Tell them to be ready to paint Normandy on her. I'm sure you'll get the order from Shepard soon. Send him down when he's free."

The hologram field dropped as he dropped the connection with her. Her shoulders slumped in defeat as she tried to gather herself. As usual, he was prepared to discard her once she had finished her usefulness to him; why was she surprised?

She turned to find Jacob standing in the room. "What are you doing here Jacob?" she asked angrily. She didn't like that he'd seen the dressing down. It was embarrassing enough for her already.

He looked abashed, and a little ashamed. "I… the Illusive Man told me to watch the conversation."

"Oh," she said, the fight dropping out of her sails. She knew what this meant. He was going to have a talk with her. It wasn't the first time that the Illusive Man had had Jacob do this.

But Jacob knew her well, recognizing her change. "Look, I don't want to bust on your chops more than that. But Miranda, you're so locked up in seeing things from your angle. John is everything we thought he was, and more. You're so focused on what you've read about him that you're not seeing the real him. You know his actions, but you don't know him."

If it were anyone else, she would have just ignored them and told them to go to hell. But her friendship with Jacob was different, which was probably why the Illusive Man had him do this. It wasn't always overt, but he was one of the few people she trusted. Although their past was considerably more complicated than most friends were, she still liked him. But that was a path she didn't want to go down.

"Maybe you're right," she replied quietly. "I know every little thing Shepard has done. I guess I don't know how or why he has done it. Hell, I can't refer to him as anyone but Shepard. But still… I don't see how that man will get the job done. He's willing to risk us not getting the information we need because his friend asked him."

Jacob shrugged. "Or maybe that's how he's gotten it done, by being loyal to his friends and trusting his team. The Quarrians sent all the data they got from debriefing Veetor. It's probably more than we could have gotten out of him ourselves."

Miranda shot him a glare. She could be very persuasive. "I doubt that. Still, he's not very loyal to us. Do you think he was prepared to kill us?"

"Without a second thought. Even after you backed down, I wasn't sure if he wouldn't kill you. But then, you weren't being loyal to him."

She recoiled from him. "So, you're on his side are you?"

Jacob threw his arms up, exasperated. "You just don't get it, do you? His side, your side, it doesn't matter. All that matters is getting the job done. Stopping the Reapers and saving humanity."

"And you think he's the best one for the job?" she asked dryly.

"I think he's our best shot, yes." Even though she expected it, it still hurt to hear. She was genetically engineered to be perfect, and she still was less than Shepard in others eyes. And he had no such advantage.

She sighed. He had made his point. What good were all these genes if she couldn't use them, as she apparently couldn't. "Well I guess I don't have a choice anyways. I'll go talk to him."

She walked up the stairs, finding Shep… no, John… at the weapons rack, cleaning his assault rifle. Without looking up, he waved to her.

"So I suppose I owe you an apology," she started, roughly. "I didn't follow your orders."

He glanced to her. "You followed them, eventually. Not the way I'd have liked it to go down, but better than some of the alternatives."

She almost wanted to antagonize him by cracking a joke about his head being splattered on the floor, but wasn't so sure about it now. Maybe she was personally compromised, and couldn't see what everyone else was telling her. Plus, antagonizing him wasn't in her best interest. "Are you convinced that we can help you? That we are the ones who can get this done? That it needs to be done?"

"I'm convinced that something needs to be done, yes. I'm not sure if Cerberus is the way I want to do this."

"We're the only way," Miranda shot back coldly.

But Shepard was un-phased, throwing off his reply non-challantly. "That's a discussion for me and Tim." She frowned inwardly. Who was Tim? Ah, of course, The Illusive Man. He was trying to be funny. "But I think we need to make one thing perfectly clear here and now." He stopped cleaning the rifle, putting it down and focussing all her attention on her. The way his voice changed caught her attention, what with the threatening tone underneath. "If I stay, you're following my orders. You can question and probe what I'm doing and why, but you do them appropriately. In fact, I encourage you to do that. In private. But you pull a stunt like that again, and either you'll wind up dead at worst, or off the team at best. We clear?"

"Crystal," she replied, trying to keep any hint of coldness out of her voice. "I'm not the ice-bitch you think I am Shepard." She didn't know how that last statement slipped out, or if it was even truth or fiction. After all these years of playing one as needed, maybe she had become one.

He seemed satisfied, nodding. "Alright then, show me and we can get along just fine."

She was surprised at how easy it had been to clear the air between them. She had needed to swallow some of her pride, but he hadn't sought to rip it apart as she would have done. He was inviting her to try again, and yet she wouldn't try it again. Not now. Something had changed, she just didn't know what. "Well, the Illusive Man would like to speak with you," she finished, feeling a bit lame.

In a flash, he quickly re-assembled the rifle in front of her. Then he smiled at her. "Well, I'd hate to keep Ol' Tim waiting. Have a good day Ms. Lawson."

Yep, she had definitely mis-read him.

* * *

He left Miranda behind, knowing full well he was playing a dangerous game. He still didn't have a read on her, and in fact this last little meeting had thrown him off even more. He hadn't expected that at all. Maybe he had misread her. On the other hand, he was well aware that at any future time she may once again question him, and it might get violent. Basically, nothing had changed he supposed.

Jacob nodded to him as he passed him on the way to the holo-room. He gave Jacob a smile but kept walking, needing to settle with the Illusive Man first.

The holo scanned him in quickly, and his vision came to TIM, smoking as usual. "Good work on Freedom's Progress. The Quarians gave us all the extra intel we needed. I was surprised, given our history."

Ah, so that's what prompted Miranda's half-apology. "Given your history involved trying to blow up a ship, I would say I'm surprised too. But I know Tali. She wouldn't lie to me."

"Our history was long ago, before your return. It's not relevant here. You and I, we have different methods. But I can't argue with your results."

He almost wanted to push on the statement of it not being relevant… the Illusive Man had brought it up after all. But it wouldn't help him accomplish what he needed here. "I know we both do what needs to be done to get the job done. But I'm not like you."  
"Think what you will. But we're more alike than different."

"Don't ever think that. I don't sacrifice my people unless there is no other way. I know it's not the same for you." Before the Illusive Man could retort, he held up his hand. "No, it's fine. It doesn't matter what you or I say. We both know what's important here."

TIM smiled at him. "Very good. Yes, your data confirmed it was the collectors behind these abductions."

"So you did already know," Shepard commented coolly, crossing his arms. "Somehow I'm not surprised."

"I had my suspicions. But I needed you to get the evidence yourself. I know you wouldn't have believed me otherwise." He pulled himself out of his chair, his cybernetic eyes changing a bit. "The collectors have always been a bit of an enigma. They travel about, gathering seemingly random things, small groups of random species, in the dozens at a time only, giving us a taste of their technology. Then they return through the Omega 4 relay. This is the first evidence we have of direct aggression by them. This is the first time they've taken so many, and from a single species."

Shepard dredged any information he could remember about the relay from the back of his mind. "Omega-4… no ship has ever come back from there, has it?"

"Unfortunately not. The present theory is that the collector ships are reacted to differently, that it's actually let through in some special way. Some sort of technology that we don't understand. I think it just points to them working for the Reapers," he stated, as if it was never in question. Which John thought was ridiculous. There could be a million reasons. Still, that explanation was certainly the most likely. He had to get a damper on his automatic drive to reject anything the Illusive Man said.

"So why humanity?" John asked. He didn't know if TIM would be honest with him, but it couldn't hurt to ask.

He turned away from Shepard. "Well, if they're working for the reapers as I believe, it could be the role we played in Sovereigns destruction. What's far more concerning is that they abduct, not kill. Behaviour like this, I don't know what to make of it. The Reapers must have some hidden goal we can't see."

While John could see how the Reapers might be linked to this, there still wasn't any proof. "All this doesn't point conclusively to the Reapers. If you want me to work on this, you need to tell me everything."

The Illusive Man seemed to consider his words, taking another drag. "I'm glad you asked that. I can tell you that the patterns are there, buried in the data. The Alliance and Council want to believe the threat is gone with Sovereign." He turned back to him, fire in his eyes. "You and I know better. If we wait, if we let the Reapers go on the march, we will lose. We need to take the fight to them. I'll do whatever it takes to stop them."

He was right about the Alliance and the Council. They were a bunch of political hacks. Fear of invasions, preparing for wars that there was no proof about, were bad for the poll numbers. They couldn't be counted to get the job done. But he had never answered his question, merely said that there was evidence. Not convincing. Still, he could work with them for now and do his own digging.

And as much as he hated to admit it, Cerberus would provide him the resources he needed to stop them. They probably wouldn't stab him in the back until he had done what they needed from him. But by then, he had every intention of being ready for them. He'd stab them in the back then, if not before.

"So let's say I believe you, and that I could work with you. And to be clear, I would be working with, not for you." The Illusive Man nodded to him. "I can't do this alone. I'm going to need a team."

"I know. You're not the best because you're a good soldier; you're the best because you make a team work together effortlessly, and make them more than they are. I've already compiled a list of the best soldiers, scientists, biotics and mercenaries the galaxy has to offer. You'll get dossiers on them." He tapped a few keys, and Shepard felt his omni-tool rumble as it received the files. "It's up to you to recruit them, but I have faith in your abilities. I'll track the collectors, and keep you up to date. You do what you have to do to get your team."

Ah, so he wanted to give him a team, not let him use the team he wanted. "I'm not so sure I like the idea of using your team. What about my old team?"

"This team is no more my team than it would be yours. I've had contact with none of them, they're simply the best. As for your old team, Williams is with the Alliance still. Vakarian has disappeared. Dr. T'Soni is on Illium, working for the Shadow Broker I believe. I wouldn't trust her."

He had known Ashley would be a part of the Alliance still, seeing as she was loyal to a fault. Much as Miranda was loyal to Cerberus. He might be able to recruit her, but he doubted it, not since this involved Cerberus. He'd have to put out his own feelers for Garrus, there may be something he wasn't being told.

He thought it was ridiculous that Liara would work for the Shadow Broker. Something else was likely going on. Still, he could at least look over the dossiers that the Illusive Man sent him, consider them.

"And Tali?"

The Illusive Man was actually a bit flustered. "I have to admit, that one surprised me. I can't commit to her without more intel."

Shepard raised an eyebrow to her. "This is my team, right? I don't need your permission. Send me what you have."

Once again, he knew he'd surprised the Illusive Man by the way he shuffled slightly. He really wasn't used to being questioned. After a moment, he shrugged. "Miranda informed me that Tali is unavailable for now. I just don't want her to jeopardize the mission."

"She would never jeopardize the mission if I brought her aboard."

He nodded, accepting Shepard at his word. Or maybe he just didn't care. "It's your call Shepard. It's all up to you."

Well he was glad that was settled. The Illusive Man was surprisingly co-operative. He could work with this. "Good. I'd say I'd try to get the council to help, but given how much I was listened to last time I warned them, I'd say I'm wasting my time. Is that all?"

He wasn't acknowledged, the Illusive Man just kept moving. "Not quite. Two more things. One, head to Omega and recruit Dr. Solus. He's a brilliant Salarian scientist who is our best shot at neutralizing the paralyzing agent of the Collectors."

A reasonable suggestion, but once again phrased as an order. "I'll think about it. And the other?"

"A familiar face. I've found a pilot you can trust, an old friend. I hear he's the best. I think you'll like him." He disappeared a moment later as he abruptly hung up.

* * *

"Hey Commander. Just like old times huh? Except we got one creepy ass boss eh?" Shepard was shocked as he turned around.

"Joker? What the… it's great to see you!" Shepard explained, happy to see his friend. He smiled, but in the back of his mind he remembered that the Illusive Man had likely recruited Joker just to give him that sense of comfort of having an old friend. Still, Joker was one of the best pilots in the galaxy even with his medical problems. And he was loyal; he wouldn't stab him in the back. And he genuinely was one of his good friends. Joker smiled at him, and that was when Shepard noticed he was standing. On his own. "Wait… what happened to you Joker?"

"Cerberus hooked me up with the newest medical breakthroughs. I still break easily but… I can move, you know. And do some light activity."

Shepard broke out into a full out grin, lightly tapping Joker on the shoulder. "You're a real boy now Joker. That sounds great."

Joker was grinning widely at him too. "So I get to be your helmsman again. Just like old times, huh Commander?"

"Not quite," John replied, sobering up fairly quickly. "Cerberus isn't really the group I wanted to work with."

"Yea well, they're not all bad. You're here, aren't you?"

Shepard shrugged as Joker started leading him away. "But there's a lot of strings attached it seems. What happened after…" he trailed off, not sure how to finish.

Joker turned a bit more serious, which John had rarely seen. "It all fell apart without you Commander. Everything you stirred up, the council wanted gone."

"Well that's surprising. I was certain they'd follow through."

Joker matched Shepards wry grin at his sarcasm, but it fell off as he continued. "The team got broken up, records were sealed, and worst of all I got grounded. Hell yea I joined Cerberus, especially with the medical care they offered and letting me fly."

Shepard reluctantly nodded. He could understand where Jeff was coming from. The most important thing in Joker's life was flying, especially with his condition. When you added in the medical treatment, Joker was getting a good deal. But was it worth selling his soul over? "So you really trust Cerberus? The Illusive Man?"

Joker snorted at him. "You know me Commander, I don't trust anyone who makes more than I do. But hey, they aren't all bad. They saved your ass, treated me, and let me fly. But best of all, they did this."

He looked out a window into the darkness. Shepard turned as well, curious. "They only told me last night."

Lights started to flash on, immediately highlighting the words SR-2, and the nose of a ship that he recognized very well. As the lights continued to flash, Shepard watched with amazement and a smile as his old ship was revealed. Well, not exactly. He could immediately tell it was larger than the original Normandy.

The lights finished flashing on, and the ship gleaned in the dark background.

"Cerberus sure knows how to put on a show, huh?" Joker quipped.

Shepard's grin faded. Of course they did. "Yea, they sure do. Only thing missing is some sort of epic music," he replied jokingly. But he wasn't that impressed. He didn't like drama, and he didn't like feeling as though he was being played. And of course he should feel like he was being played – he damn well WAS. "But she's ours now. We better give her a name."

Joker smiled at him. "How about watermelon? Or porky?"

"Hungry?"

"A little. I'll see to the painting."

Shepard nodded at Joker. Of course it would be Normandy. "You do that. I've got some sleep to get. Considering all the slacking off I've been doing these last 2 years, I sure am tired."

Joker sighed. "Leave the jokes to me Commander."

Shepard grumbled as he left. So his last joke hadn't been his best, but he liked his first one. At least he thought he was funny.

* * *

"Welcome to the Normandy Commander. I hope she lives up to your memories of the old one."

Shepard stepped out of the airlock door in front of Jacob, looking at his new ship. The design was largely the same, if a bit… shinier for lack of another word. It didn't have the utility feel of a military ship, but instead felt like a civilian craft. That would wear out with time, he hoped. The feeling was just off, foreign to him.

"We have a full crew complement then?" He glanced up at the cockpit, noticing the change immediately of there only being a seat for Joker, who was at the helm performing checklists.

He turned back and was surprised to find Miranda right in front of him. "Yes we do Shepard. They're at their stations performing final checks before launch. Our maiden voyage."

He started walking down the hall towards the CIC, looking over a few of the crewmens shoulders. "Shakedown run first?" he asked. It was customary for new ships to have to pace themselves, stressing and then easing off on the engine, much like one would on a new car. The engine needed to be eased into it.

Miranda answered back quickly. "That won't be necessary here Shepard. That's all taken care of. Within a few hours you'll never even know she was new." She stepped ahead of him as they reached the center display of the CIC, quickly calling up a picture of a Salarian. "This is Dr. Mordin Solus, Salarian professor presently on Omega. After my review of the dossiers, he's my suggestion for our first recruitment objective."

She always spoke so formally when speaking to him. Until he got her angry enough of course, though he'd only seen that the one time. Still, it was curious as to why she referred such formal speech to him. Even in combat she was formal with him, though she wasn't with Jacob. Still, despite his slight annoyance at the formality, he ignored it in favour of her sound advice. "Good analysis Miss Lawson. With the collectors able to paralyze humans, we do need some way to protect ourselves. I'm sure he will be able to."

"Exactly. Without a countermeasure to protect us, we'd be helpless."

"Although showing up on Omega in a warship with the name Normandy plastered on her sure would be a good way to announce my presence back to the galaxy. I'm not so sure that's a good idea yet." Shepard frowned to himself, thinking out loud. "But the waves created could be of benefit still; a distraction while we do our thing there. Omega it is I suppose."

"Acquiring Dr. Solus appears to be the most logical place to start," a synthetic female voice boomed out behind him.

Shepard turned around, shocked to find a holographic blue orb staring back at him, lines down the middle. He frowned and squinted a closer look, before grinding his teeth, fairly certain this was no mere VI. "What… the hell… is an AI doing on my ship?" he forced out angrily. Trust Cerberus to do something so stupid.

Miranda's tone immediately turned conciliatory. "Shepard, we wanted the best for this ship. EDI is shackled with severe limits. Outside combat it has no control, and in combat all it can do is operate our cyberwarfare suites and countermeasure suites."

'EDI' as Miranda called it, picked up from her. "I am the enhanced defence intelligence unit on the ship. My only other task is to observe the crew and offer advice as my processors deem fit. My observations and notes are then forwarded to the Illusive Man."

Shepard shook his head. "Un-fucking believable." He turned to Miranda. "At least it's honest about its spying," he spat out. "Tells me outright it's spying on me. I expected to be spied on, but by an AI? You people are just… unbelievable."

"You said that already," commented Miranda dryly.

Shepard blinked at her in shock. Was that… a joke? From Miranda? He didn't know what to make of that, so instead he just ignored it. He turned back to EDI. "Ok, so I'm not unreasonable. I can understand being spied on, I imagine that between me and this ship Cerberus pretty much bankrupted itself. But an AI?" He barely paused at the end of this question. "I'd demand it off my ship, but I suppose it's not really my ship, is it? I'm just the puppet to the puppet master," he muttered coldly but quickly got a hold of himself. This was not a good way to act. This wasn't him, he was losing control. The one thing that he really couldn't afford to do while surrounded by Cerberus was crack like this. He was giving away too much information about himself, buttons that they could use against him. His old intelligence officer would have had his head for this. "Forget it. Doesn't matter. What are your jobs here?"

"I'll be your executive officer Shepard, in charge of day to day functioning, maintenance, paperwork. I'm your second in command." Shepard nodded at Miranda's explanation. He had expected that. She wouldn't last long at that position, he would replace her soon enough he was sure. He'd keep her for the paperwork though. He didn't miss that. "Mr. Taylor is in charge of the armoury. He'll keep our weapons in top shape."

Shepard nodded at Jacob. He seemed capable enough for that duty. "Ok then. We'll make this work one way or another." He turned to the cockpit where Joker was with Miranda following him, while Jacob went off to the armoury. "Ok Joker. Take her out. Next stop, Omega."

"Aye aye Commander sir, sir commander, sir," Joker started mockingly, though Shepard ignored him as the gates opened in front of them. Moment later they were easing out into space, the rumble of the deck lighter than the old Normandy possibly. Seconds later and the FTL drive initiated. John wouldn't have known if he wasn't watching. "We should be about 2 hours. I'll let you know when we're closer."

"Got it Joker. Miss Lawson, I'd appreciate a tour of the ship."

She bowed her head slightly. "Of course, Commander. Follow me."

* * *

"This is the top of the ship, and our last floor to visit. It just contains one room – yours."

Shepard stepped out of the elevator behind Miranda to see a single door. "A whole floor just for lil' ol' me?"

Miranda chose to ignore his tone, unsure if he was mocking her or trying to crack wise. "Well we had extra space, and we wanted to add a cabin for the XO. We opted to give the captain a much larger cabin with more privacy and the XO can take your old space."

Shepard offered Miranda a seemingly genuine smile. "Great, you can have my castoff. Let's have a look at this place."

Miranda didn't smile back, but instead opened the door. Too bad, he had hoped she would lighten up a bit in private. John quickly took in the cabin. Larger, more comfortable looking. He wasn't sure how he felt about the privacy, it had always been easy to interact with the crew in his old cabin, and he had always been nearby for any problems. However, it was nice to maintain a bit of distance.

"Looks nice. Although the deskt doesn't look the best for having meetings, it's more set up for just one person."

Miranda conceded the point. "Yes, unfortunately. However, that's what the briefing room is for, or you can use my office for that purpose. I should be involved in those discussions anyways for the most part I imagine."

Shepard looked over at her sharply. "Is that so?" His voice was open and non-threatening, but there was just the faintest of an edge there. He had thought this issue had been solved. He had to nip this in the bud. It was nothing personal against Miranda, she was competent enough. But she was Cerberus.

"Well if I'm your executive office, I should be appraised of decisions, shouldn't I? We'll be making decisions together, and…"

Shepard cut her off. "I'll be making the decisions Miss Lawson. I'll solicit your input, and you can have your say, but I get final word."

"I didn't mean it like…"

John cut her off again, unwilling to compromise here. "I'm not finished yet. I had said before if we were going to work together, that we would have a conversation about your loyalty to Cerberus again. Well, it's time to have that conversation." Miranda didn't say anything, seeming to wait for him to finish. "I'm sorry to have cut you off. But we're in private here, and we need to get this out in the open so we can work together. So you start."

Miranda opened her mouth, but then it slid shut. He was just so god damn frustrating! She hadn't meant to sound like she was equal in command with her first statement, and then when she tried to explain what she meant, he cuts her off and goes on that rant. He just…. UGH! Since her talk with Shepard last time, she had taken some time to think, and had concluded that Jacob was right. She had to work for him, so there was no sense antagonizing him. The game she was playing wasn't helping her; Shepard was still a closed book to her. For all the facts she knew about him, she didn't know the first thing about him.

She took a short breath, and then started speaking again. "First of all, I was going to say that I didn't mean to imply we made our decisions together as in a compromise, I just meant that we'd work together to make a decision in just the way you said – I give you my view and advice, and you make the choice. Second of all, I'm still completely loyal to Cerberus. It just so happens that being loyal to Cerberus means being loyal to you, regardless of your choices. However, as long as we're in relative privacy and in a non-combat situation, I foresee that we will fight over pretty much everything. And that is something that won't change. But in combat, you can count on me to follow you Commander."

Shepard stared at her for a long moment, before cracking a light smile. "So was that your decision, or were you ordered too, while kicking and screaming against it?" She flushed red at his statement, so he nodded. "Well, I'm glad to see that you're still the Illusive Man's lapdog. However, as long as you do exactly what you just said, I'm ok with that." He inwardly winced at his lapdog comment slipping out. Some people would get that he was just cracking wise and not serious, but not someone who didn't know him. Well… maybe he was somewhat serious.

Miranda was infuriated. What right did this… this… stupid man have? Oh good god she couldn't even think up a good insult for him she was so furious. No one had ever had this effect on her.

"You see Miss Lawson, I like different opinions on my ship. I like people to tell me their viewpoints, in case I missed something. You'll find that I'm surprisingly open to changing my conduct, as long as you have a valid and logical argument. And as long as you aren't betraying a member of my team; which, since you're a part of my team now, is good news for you. We won't have to try and kill each other. Step out of line though, and I will put you down." Miranda noted that he ended off jovially, as if this was all a game to him, which it maybe was. Maybe he was doing nothing more than finding any button of hers he could and just slamming away at it, just because he could; because she had to take it. She hated the Illusive Man's orders.

She tactfully opted to say nothing.

Shepard held her stare however, his blue eyes seeming to dig right into her. He had this eerie way of making her feel like he was in her head. "Nothing to say, Lawson? Remember, we're in private. You can let me have it. In fact, please do. I can promise no repercussions here. I want to be able to trust you, and I want you to trust me. I doubt it can happen, but if it's going to, this is how we do it. So speak your mind. Or does the Illusive Man control that too?" Now he was just pushing and prodding her to get a reaction. And she didn't disappoint him.

She exploded the moment he finished, unable to contain her emotions any longer. "YOU ARROGANT TWIT! You're walking around like you're so much better than everyone else just because **we**, Cerberus, spent so much bringing you back and giving you this ship. Because **we** saved **your** god damned life, threw years of our lives into you. Just because the Illusive Man thinks the sun shines out of your fucking ass doesn't mean it actually does. In fact, I'd say you're nothing more than an asshole!" She finished with her finger pointed at him.

Shepard grinned darkly at her. "Tell me how you really feel Lawson, come on." He was surprised at the outburst, but had been hoping for it. Any weak link in the armour she presented to him could be used against Cerberus if need be. Or preferably, he could use it to actually get to know her and make her a part of his team, however unlikely it was.

Miranda's finger quivered in rage before she took a deep breath and slowed herself down. What the hell was that? She had never lost control before, she played the role of the ice queen and she liked that moniker. Always professional, never letting someone get under her skin. Well John Shepard was well under her skin. He was like a damned tick, crawling up to roost.

She lowered her finger, resuming a neutral stance. "I'm sorry Commander. I don't know what came over me."

John just shrugged at her. "No, we both know what came over you. I'm impressed you bottled all that up so well actually."

He turned around and walked deeper into the cabin. "You're my executive officer and second in command for now Miranda, since presently you actually are the best choice. I expect that it won't be long before I find someone to replace you, in spirit if not in name. In the meantime, remember that I'm in command. So none of your Cerberus bullshit, none of your freak experiments, and no sacrificing members of our team. This is my operation; you're just along for the ride. And that ride can end at any time."

Well, she'd already blown her lid once and screamed at her commanding officer, mine as well push her luck. Plus, he was really pissing her off. "So it really is all about you then?"

Shepard turned back to her. "You nailed it Miranda, that's exactly what I'm saying." But his voice was sarcastic, as if she had completely missed the point. He turned more serious. "Miss Lawson, I'm saying exactly what I said. That I don't trust Cerberus, and that by extension, I don't trust you. I'm going to stop the Reapers, and I'm going to use Cerberus' help to stop them. But I won't become like them or you, and I won't allow you to change me. I plan on walking away from this the same person."

Miranda stared down at him, her voice softening. "You're wrong about us John. You'll see that in time. We brought you back, gave you a second chance. Can't you give us a second chance?"

"I am Miss Lawson. I'm here, aren't I?"

She sighed. "Well then, I guess the cards are on the table. I can expect to be replaced at any time, you don't trust me, and I don't even think you like me. You sure know how to be a leader and earn my loyalty, sir." Sarcasm could go both ways.

John smiled at her, pleased to see she wasn't too serious. "I don't need your loyalty Miranda, not really. You're loyal to the Illusive Man, and he has loaned you to me. I believe that you'll do all you can to help me. Besides, you'd never be loyal to me. I just don't want you to be misled by me; I try to avoid lying to my crew. You're a skilled operative and would be a boon to almost any team. But not mine, not with your attitude. That would never change without you changing. And I don't see that happening."

He was wrong. She was exactly what this mission needed, what he needed. Well, she had to throw in her lot with Shepard now anyways – her fate was his fate after all – and as long as she was here, she knew Shepard needed her. He didn't see it yet, but he would.

So maybe she could change. She would try, because one day she knew that Shepard would recognize his mistake and she would be welcome. He was a good enough man to swallow his pride and admit he was wrong, and to respect and trust her for what she could do. And until then, she'd take her lickings. If it was what she had to do, she could do it. "You're wrong Shepard. I'll show you."

But he was disinterested. "Maybe. I know you think I have something to prove to you. But I have no intention of proving anything to you Miss Lawson. Either I will show you what you want to see or I won't. It won't matter to me." He paused before continuing. "Anything else Miss Lawson?"

Miranda sighed. Maybe this was why he was a great leader. Her justifications to herself that she would prove herself to him because she had no choice were wrong. She would prove herself to him because… because he was him. She didn't know why even, there was just something about him. There was no sense dwelling on that for now. "Just one. A Mr. Zaeed Massani will be greeting us on Omega to join our team. One of the best mercenaries in the galaxy. He'll be useful."

Shepard nodded. "A hired gunhand. Can't say I trust them, but it's not like it can get worse than what I have now. Dismissed."

As Miranda walked out, Shepard let out the breath he'd been holding, though he immediately regretted the sign of relief. No doubt EDI was spying on him and would relay that to Miranda.

For all his bluster, he really did think she was going to be invaluable. She had her problems, but without a doubt she could make an excellent member of the team. He doubted her ability to lead effectively, since she only would work well in a more hierarchal organization which his team would never be, but he could use her. He really wasn't sure how much of his negative views were clouded by his preconception of her being Cerberus either, if he was completely honest with himself. Still, it was unlikely she'd change enough for anything more than a cold-professional relationship of someone under his command, and he had basically told her as much. The ball was now in her court to see if she could be useful to him.

And if she turned out to be too much of a problem, he could still kill her. He wasn't going to let one woman stop him from stopping the Reapers. He doubted the Illusive Man would even complain. A man like that used people, and then discarded them. Even his closest and best agent was still just a tool to be used.

One day, the shoe would be on the other foot for him, and Shepard couldn't wait to be that other foot.

* * *

Thanks for reading. The next chapter is a long way's away, possibly a month. I just don't have the time to write.


	3. Chapter 3

Wow did this ever take a long time to write. I just don't have the time anymore. As a result, I'm going to have to change the storyline after this chapter (although it had its effect in this chapter, which originally was two). Instead of being an 'epic' outlining all of the worlds, I'm going to have to move to snippets of important actions, which unfortunately means you get lame summaries of what happens between those snippets. The alternative is to just not write/finish it (like... ever), so I have to do it :(

But it'll still be good quality, I can promise that :) With no further ado, read away!

* * *

"You hold here Jacob. No one gets to Garrus, you got that?"

Jacob nodded to him. "I'll watch his back sir. Not that it needs much watching."

John nodded, turning back to Garrus. "We'll handle downstairs. You buy us the time to close those shutters."

Garrus flashed a turian grin at him. "Just like old times Shepard. Watch yourself."

Shepard smiled at him. "Always." He nodded to Zaeed and Miranda and started jogging downstairs. He wasn't worried about Garrus. He was a crack shot, and Jacob would easily be able to hold the narrow hallway with his shotgun. Still, the turian was tired, it was plain to see. Days without rest would do that to anyone. Even Garrus.

As he turned towards the door Garrus had described to him, he gave another look-over of Zaeed. The old mercenary had proven his worth so far. Not quite as good a shot as Garrus, nor was he as fast. But he had a way about combat such that he didn't need them. He just knew what to do at all time. Without a doubt a valuable resource, and wasn't apt to stab him in the back – he was loyal to the money.

Miranda was once again showing her value, her impressive biotics being the forefront of their assaults. And Shepard was privately pleased at the way she seemed to have changed, ready to follow his orders. A little less confrontational too, though she still had that air of superiority. Regardless, it was a welcome change.

The first shutter was up ahead, with no enemies in sight. A quick glance at the shutter that would come down and he was sure that nothing was getting through. 6 inches thick of what looked like starship quality armour. He quickly tapped the console to have it shut, and it started to countdown.

As if summoned, a force of Krogan and Vorcha started to close. Shepard leaned out of cover and started spraying the area with his rifle. "Zaeed, suppression fire. Miranda, slow the krogan!"

Seconds later the shutter closed. The sounds of fire continued on the other side, but there was no way they were getting through that door.

"Let's move," he said and turned to the right, opening the door to a hail of fire.

Surprised, he dove forward to the nearest piece of cover as his companions took up positions on each side of the door.

He blindly shoved his rifle up, spraying and praying. "Zaeed, suppression on my mark. I'm going to cut right and flank. Miranda, move up to where I am and draw their attention."

"Got it," she replied. "Zaeed, try and hit that canister back there before Shepard goes. It will release gas and let me ignite it with biotics."

The merc grunted. "If you say so."

Shepard was once again impressed with Miranda. Another good idea. "Alright, lay it down. When that explosion goes off I'll make my move and you make yours Lawson."

He checked his rifle, replacing thermal clips. No sooner was he done than a large explosion went off and he pushed up, running across the open space to the side. He heard Miranda slam into the cover he had been at moments before, the light staccato of her weapon replacing the heavier sound of his rifle.

"Alright, draw their fire." He moved to the far right, and leaned out…

A varren was scampering towards him, a mere 3 feet away. He barely had time to pull back as it lunged, flying through the air at his throat. It sailed by him as he was back in cover. Which was lucky, since his shields wouldn't do much against the teeth on that thing.

He turned his weapon on it, and a quick 3 round burst to its head put it down. While the varren was armoured, its head was still largely unprotected.

He went back and moved stealthily up the flank. Finally he reached the perfect position. A clump of vorcha were behind a set of cover which gave them easy cover from Miranda, but left them exposed to him. Plus, they were really grouped up close. He thumbed his last grenade, considering it.

He looked around, and saw a better alternative.

"Alright you two, here's how we play it. I'm going to levitate a canister out to the big clump about 30 meters down the center. Zaeed, hit it a few times to let it leak. Miranda, you detonate it. Questions?"

A pair of negative answered him. Shepard drew his biotics to him. He had never been a very good biotic, but he did have the ability for basic telekinesis. This was something he could handle. "Alright, here we go."

He focuses, letting the power flow through his arms, imagining tendrils of energy springing from them to the canister. He had them wrap around the canister, and then pulled up and floated it towards the Vorcha.

It didn't move fast, he was no true biotic. Other biotics wouldn't have to imagine the tendrils of energy, to concentrate as he did on every little detail. They could just think it and it happened. But he only had a taste of the power.

The vorcha cried out in surprise as the canister settled over them. One spotted him and squawked a warning out. Shepard grit his teeth with the effort as they started to fire on them.

The explosion a second later actually knocked him back as the vorcha were eliminated in a fireball.

"Go," he grunted as he moved forward, looking back towards Miranda and Zaeed. A single vorcha was left, between them, and he fell easily to John's flanking fire.

"Krogan closing," Miranda called out as John turned back to the shutter. She was right; a giant Krogan was lumbering towards him, its shotgun extended. He immediately started to unload into it, but its thick armour held. The Krogan fired its shotgun, peppering his shields with fire, taking them to ¼ strength. He kept firing but dropped back before the shotgun could tear him apart.

He heard the sound of ripping metal, glancing back up to see that Miranda had literally torn up the Krogan's armour, leaving vast holes in it. Shepard grinned as Zaeed and his own firepower rolled into the Krogan, and it dropped seconds later. He quickly moved to the panel, and it closed uneventfully.

"Good work. Let's get the last one and get back to Garrus before he falls asleep. These mercs are nadda for us," Shepard grinned his team.

Zaeed just grunted, while Miranda favoured him with a slight smile. Well, at least she wasn't as cold as she used to be.

* * *

"GARRUS!" Shepard screamed as he dove behind the couch, the gunship's fire tracking towards him. "Garrus, hold on. We're going to get your out of here. Just don't move!"

Shepard took stock of the situation quickly. This couch was made of some solid metal, since it withstood the fire directed at it fairly well. Zaeed had moved down the room to hold off the mercs who had dropped in on their level. Jacob and Miranda were downstairs, finishing off the last of the blue suns there. It was just him and this gunship, and Garrus didn't have much time. The gunship had torn the hell outta him.

"Clean the mercs up fast and get up here. This gunship has to go down NOW." He switched to Normandy's frequency. "Joker, I need a shuttle down here ASAP. Garrus is hurt, he was Archangel. Have it prepped and good to leave, but you don't send it until I give the all clear. Our AOE is still hot." As if to punctuate that, the table next to the couch he was behind exploded into a millions pieces as a rocket detonated, sprawling Shepard to the side.

"Got it Commander. I'll have Chakwas on…"

"Negative on Chakwas Joker, it's too hot. Just get it ready. Out."

He cut the comm as Miranda and Jacob came running in, spraying fire towards the gunship, which directed its attention towards them.

"Sure would be nice if we had a rocket launcher, wouldn't you say Commander?" asked Jacob. Shepard didn't respond, aware that saying before the mission that they shouldn't need one for this was rather foolish in hindsight. He always preferred speed to heavy firepower, but sometimes it was needed.

"Or perhaps we could have sabatoged it. You know, like I suggested," said Zaeed as he also cut in.

Shepard snarled. "Now is NOT the time. Let's just hit this thing with everything we have. Engines are the target. Jacob, get medi-gel to Garrus and look after him best you can. We'll cover."

The team sprang into action, Miranda using his biotics to tear at the armour while Zaeed and Shepard poured fire at it, drawing its attention.

He could hear Jacob swearing about the bleeding, swearing about the medi-gel not doing enough, and even swearing as bullets impacted all around them. This had to end now.

At last the engine they were targeting started to sputter.

He grabbed his last grenade, glad he'd saved it. He had one shot at this. "Miranda, cut fire. Zaeed, draw it's attention."

Miranda was on his left, the same side as the engine they'd damaged. He wanted as easy a toss as possible, so by having the gunship aim towards Zaeed it would bring the engine that much closer to him.

Seconds later the gunship turned towards Zaeed, and John made his move. He threw himself over the torn up couch towards the gunship, stumbling a bit. Tarak seemed to jerk in surprise, and the gunship wavered a bit, shocked that Shepard was charging right at him. A mere 2 steps from the couch and 3 from the wall, he let go of the activated grenade, watching it float towards the engine.

He slammed into cover behind the wall as the gunships guns opened up, bullets flashing over him.

There was the loudest sound he'd ever heard for less than a 1/10th of a second, and then nothing as his helmets noise dampeners kicked in. The kick from the explosion launched him from the wall, and he slid along the ground painfully, coming to rest against the couch.

"Shepard!" he heard Miranda yell out, and he glanced over as she hopped over her cover, coming over to him with a worried look.

That stopped pretty quick when she saw the smile on his face. "Damn, that was fun." It drained away seconds later as he remembered Garrus. He switched over to the Normandy's frequency when he saw the Kodiak streaking in straight towards them. He'd be pissed that his orders had been ignored, but he was too relieved to see it.

He pulled himself up, limping over to Garrus as quickly as he could. "How is he Jacob?"

Garrus groaned in front of him. "Not good. The medigel is barely keeping him alive. He needs serious medical attention fast."

Shepard glanced back at Miranda who was behind him, but she stared at him evenly. He didn't know if she was any good with actual medicine. He assumed she was since she brought him back, but maybe she had just been the executive, not anything to do with the medicine.

Before he could think about it more however, the noise and wind kicked up as the Kodiak came to a rest and the door popped open, revealing Rolston and Hawthorne, armed with assault rifles, checking the area. He saw Hawthorne say something, and Chakwas immediately came rushing out, running as fast as the woman could.

"Status?" She yelled before she was 3 feet away from the ship.

"Lotta bleeding ma'am, bullets tore him up good, and a rocket landed literally 3 feet from him. I don't know how he's alive," Jacob answered respectfully. "3 units of Medigel applied, but it's barely done anything."

She skidded to a halt, with practiced ease checking him over in seconds. "This is bad. Stretcher, now. I can't do anything for him here. Push another gel Jacob." She reached over to her medkit, pulling out a small vial and syringe. "Easy Garrus, we're going to help you, I'll do everything I can."

Garrus tried to speak, but all that came out was a wet Gurgle.

Shepard leaned over to his friend. "Vakarian, you're not going anywhere. I need you to save my ass yet again. So don't you give up, got it?"

The turian gave the slightest of nods, as Hawthorne and Goldstein appeared with a stretcher. John stepped back and let the group do their work, as they rushed to the shuttle. He was just in the way now, he needed to let the doc do her work. She'd save Garrus. She was the best.

But as the shuttle started to rise, he couldn't help but notice that Miranda never said a word, never even looked at Garrus.

* * *

Miranda entered the communications room, immediately moving to the table as it descended, walking onto the quantum communications unit. She had sent a message requesting a meeting with the Illusive Man as soon as she had escaped from the shuttle, and he had almost immediately responded saying to come speak with him.

The hologram scanner her in quickly, and she was greeted by him sitting in his chair, the star behind him raging fiery.

He took a puff from his cigarette. "I'm assuming this is about the identity of Archangel Miranda." He spoke like he already knew who he was.

Miranda wasn't even surprised he knew who Archangel had been. She was just surprised he'd gone ahead with the recruitment. "Yes, it is. If you knew he was Garrus Vakarian, why did -"

He cut her off, something he rarely did. "I didn't know. I had my suspicions. The fact that you requested the meeting so fast told me it was him."

For the first time, Miranda was surprised by the Illusive Man. He hadn't KNOWN who Archangel was and had sent them to recruit him? The Illusive Man never left anything to chance… but apparently here he had. "Well then you see the danger this poses? The same reason we don't want Tali'zorah or Liara T'Soni aboard? We agreed that Joker and Chakwas were the familiarity he needed, no more! We were supposed to take over their role!"

The Illusive Man sighed. "I know what we agreed Miranda. The fact is my best estimates placed Archangel at a 17.3% chance of being Vakarian. But he is good, you saw that right? That intel is not mistaken?" She was surprised that he was asking her. This wasn't typical of him.

"Of course he's good! The Turian is a master with a sniper rifle, there is no doubt. But he hurts us more than helps us!"

"What's his status?"

Miranda sighed. "Bad. He took a lot of fire when we were trying to rescue him. Jacob was doing what he could, but he lost a lot of blood."

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "You didn't help him?"

She shrugged. "I didn't think it was in the best interest of the mission to save him. I still don't. With your permission, I'd like for him to have an 'accident' in recovery if he survives the surgery. We're best off if Shepard doesn't have reminders of his old crew; it might hamper his ability to work with us, leading to mission failure."

He pondered her request for a moment. "No Miranda. Regardless of Archangels identity, that is not an option. Shepard would immediately suspect us. As well, he genuinely will be help for this mission, and you need all the help you can get. You will have to work around Vakarian. I have faith in you Miranda, don't let me down."

She wanted to argue, the point, but it would be no use. Instead she nodded, as the connection shut down. She lowered her head, when she heard the slight 'whoosh' of a door. She immediately jerked around, but was greeted by a shut door, indicating it was still locked.

She frowned. She could have sworn she heard a door close. It may be tiredness; she had only slept for 3 hours over the past 51 hours. It was time for a quick nap, she supposed. She could do nothing about Vakarian, she just wouldn't fret about it for now. She would figure out a way to work on Shepard later. Her present worry was hiding the fact that she could have done something to help Garrus but hadn't. She'd have to blame dumb for medical matters.

She sighed. She hated playing dumb.

* * *

John walked out into the CIC from the armoury, lost in thought. He was heading to the elevator to head downstairs, hoping to find out the status of Garrus, when the young redhead, Kelly Chambers stepped into view.

"Commander, do you have a second?"

He frowned almost imperceptibly, before nodding and turning his attention to the pretty woman. "Yes Kelly, what is it?"

"Well I just wanted to touch base again. You have a few new messages; I sorted out the junk into a separate folder for you though you may of course review them if you don't trust me. I would understand completely based on your his-"

"Kelly, I get it. You want me to trust you, but aren't forcing it. But really, it doesn't matter if I trust you. However, as I outlined before, please refrain from touching my messages."

She bowed her head. "I'm sorry sir; I was under strict orders to minimize the work on you."

"Well now I have to wonder what messages are being deleted. By both you and EDI. No, don't say it. I know you are going to say you don't delete messages, but how am I to know?"

She sighed. "Alright Commander, I get it. I'm evil, you're good. Black and white."

John almost audibly huffed. He wasn't sure if she was playing him or not, that was the problem with psychologists, they were hard to read. The worst part of this one was she was just ditzy enough that he could believe that. And just smart enough she could be setting him up. "Kelly, don't pull that. There's no such thing as Black and white, only shades of grey. I just feel like even your grey is darker than other grey's. Let's not get into this; I've got other things on my mind."

She nodded, seeming to accept him at his word. "Mr. Vakarian has taken quite a beating. The fact he survived to the Normandy is a testament to his will and strength at all. I am sure he will come out fine."

"I hope so. If you'll excuse me, I'll go check on him. My messages can wait."

"Of course, Commander," the redhead said as she stepped back.

He really, really, hated psychologists. She was probably the hardest to read of anyone on this crew, even Miranda.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her exit the armoury, presumably from her conversation with the Illusive Man. He couldn't suppress the urge to tense up, and he even noticed her slight flick in his direction, indicating she noticed his tensing up. But she ignored him, heading straight for the cockpit instead.

Good. He got into the elevator. "EDI, main floor." The door shut and the elevator started down. "Stop the elevator EDI and lock it down. But no alarm, no one is to know about this." The elevator abruptly stopped, a red cascade filling the small room.

"It is done Commander. No one is aware that the elevator is out of service."

Shepard nodded. Time to take the subterfuge game a level deeper. Let them suspect that he thought he wasn't being listened to here. He knew he was, but misdirection was always helpful. Let them underestimate him. "I need to know where you stand in the chain of command. Or rather, where I stand."

EDI immediately responded. "On this ship, you are at the very top Commander. The Illusive Man is above you however."

"And Miranda?"

"She is one level beneath you. However, she has override codes that could place her orders above yours."

Shepard sighed. "Of course. So she is the one really in control."

"Not exactly Commander. The Illusive Man gave express orders that the override codes were purely if you were putting Cerberus in extreme jeopardy."

"Ok then EDI. If I were to order you to not tell Miranda something, what would happen?"

There was a moment pause. "I would have to tell the Illusive Man. He could then order me to tell her. If he did not, I would not be obligated to inform Ms. Lawson. The Illusive Man normally views my reports every 3 hours, so depending on the timeframe there would be a good amount of time before he could order me."

Shepard nodded, happy to hear that. He could exploit this potentially. "Very good EDI. I assume that if I asked you to inform me if you were told to tell Miranda, you would not follow that order if the Illusive Man ordered otherwise?"

"You are correct Commander."

Too bad. The AI would be less useful than he hoped, but more useful than he expected. "Very well EDI. When was the last report the Illusive Man read?"

"Approximately 22 minutes ago Commander."

"Excellent, EDI. Have Zaeed head to the armoury. Also, inform me if Miranda returns to the CIC level, privately. Resume the elevator."

As the elevator opened he walked quickly over to the medical bay, but noticed that the door was still locked and the windows still opaque. Garrus was still in surgery then. He turned around to see Jacob sitting at the mess table alone. He was watching Shepard.

"Jacob?" asked John, curious as to what Jacob was doing.

The Cerberus agent nodded to him. "Commander." At Shepards inquisitive stare, he continued. "I'm waiting to see how he fares in surgery. He's a part of our team now, so he's one of us."

John nodded. He didn't think Taylor would stoop so low as to try to buy his opinion by appearing to be loyal to his old teammate, but he also wasn't sure if he believed Jacob's story. He was a soldier however, and soldiers tended to be loyal to one another. "I see. EDI, status of the surgery?"

EDI's voice came from above. "Mr. Vakkarian is managing ok. My estimates show that he will be in surgery for another 2 or 3 hours. Damage was extensive, and…"

"Ok EDI. Thank you." He turned to Jacob. "As much as I care about Garrus, we don't have time to wait for him to get better. Come on Jacob."

The lieutenant sprang out of his chair, following Shepard closely as he made his way to the elevator. Moments later and they were in the armoury, joined by Zaeed. "Lock and load you two. We're going to explore Omega."

"Explore?" asked Jacob doubtfully. "Just the three of us? Are you sure th-"

"Mr. Taylor, I'm trusting and inviting you along. Why don't we just all load up, and not ask questions right now?" Shepard put a slight edge into his voice, enough to let Jacob know he was serious.

Jacob looked uncertain for a moment, before seeming to come to a decision. "Ok Commander. I'm here to help."

"Explore Omega eh? I know this place like the back of my hand. Well, my left hand. Never paid too much attention to that hand to be honest; just enough to make sure I could shoot with it if I needed to. But I know it well enough for our purposes."

Shepard looked at the old mercenary, trying to tell if there was a joke in there or if it was random rambling. He decided neither of the above, and he was just being messed with. Or at least he hoped so.

"Good." He snapped his shotgun and sniper onto the back of his pack, followed by his assault rifle. "Jacob, grenade launcher. See, I can learn my lesson," he said smiling. Jacob smiled back but didn't reply as he hooked the launcher onto his own suit.

"Alright. Now, in case it wasn't obvious, don't say a damn word to anyone until we're off this ship. Got it?"

Zaeed nodded, not really caring, while Jacob hesitated again. "Sir, I know what game you're playing at, and as much as I can appreciate it and will go along with it, I just wanted to let you know the shit I'll get in for this."

John smiled at him. "Noted Jacob. Don't worry, I'll gladly tell the truth… I ordered you to, and I was with you the whole time. What else could you do?"

"Fair enough sir. Let's go."

"EDI, you are under strict orders to inform no one that we're off exploring Omega, looking to get some better armour and weapons. No one is to know where we are. Also, lock down the armoury after we leave. If the ship is in imminent danger you can unlock it to defend the ship."

"Very well Commander. I would suggest that you head east after exiting the Normandy. I hear there's a Salarian there who has some very interesting ideas for just our sort of mission."

John had expected the AI to catch on very quickly to what he was doing. He was more surprised that it seemed to be content to be complicit in his activities. Of course, this fact would undoubtedly be in the Illusive Man's report. They would hopefully be done before then anyways. "Noted EDI. Let's go."

The trio of soldiers briskly moved out from the armoury, heading directly for the exit from the Normandy. Several members of the crew looked at them curiously, but no one dared to ask the heavily armed trio what they were up to, most likely due to the menacing look on Zaeed's face. They made their way out uneventfully, Joker not even noticing they were leaving, too busy bickering with EDI.

"We're not really buying stuff, right Shepard?" asked Zaeed. "I don't want to be bored out of my mind."

John snorted at the mercenary. "Hell no. Well, maybe later, when Miranda is around to have Cerberus pay for all that shit. No, right now we're going to get Mordin Solus."

"Doing all this to avoid Miranda? Really?" asked Jacob. "She's your XO, and you treat her like the enemy."

Shepard shrugged at Jacob. "She is," he replied simply.

Jacob gaped slightly at him. "But I thought… I thought that maybe we had proven ourselves to you. At least enough that you recognized us not as enemies."

"I've recognized that for now, you are not my enemy. Cerberus is not my total enemy. Miranda Lawson is certainly my enemy."

Jacob's mouth hung slackly for a moment, before it clacked shut. "Right, of course. I get it." John could immediately detect the hostility radiating off Jacob, and sighed as he stopped and turned around.

"You do? You know what I'm thinking? Why I'm thinking it?"

Jacob immediately seemed uncertain, glancing over at Zaeed, but quickly looking back. "No, I don't know. But I have my guesses. Miranda didn't help with Garrus, and there's no way you don't know that she's a medical expert having brought you back. And so you're pissed at her."

Shepard just grinned sardonically. "Actually that's not what I was thinking at all. But thanks for the info Taylor. One more reason not to trust her." He turned and started walking before pausing. "You're terrible at intelligence work Taylor. Stick to the soldiering, avoid the psychoanalyzing. I trust you; that should be enough for you. If it's not, please return to the Normandy and tell no one what's going on. Otherwise, let's get moving."

Without waiting for an answer he started walking, with Zaeed falling into step beside him. A moment later and he heard Jacob jogging to join up. He smiled to himself. Good.

* * *

Miranda sighed as she typed through the last of the mission report. It was a lot of work having to write out exactly what had occurred on their mission, analyzing everything that Shepard had done, for the Illusive Man. It had only been 25 minutes since she'd gotten to her office since she was capable of writing it up so fast, but it still felt like an eternity. EDI made her report's much quicker, but she never had the full story, never had Miranda's own human insights. So as much as she hated it, they were necessary to write for him. She just wished she didn't have to do them so quick. Plus, she had all of her duties as XO, which just piled on the work.

Not that it was anything her perfect self couldn't provide.

Well, she supposed it would be a good time to talk with Shepard. She had to find out how he felt about Vakarian. And she should probably find out how Garrus was doing. Maybe she'd get lucky and he'd have bitten the dust it now.

"EDI, what's the status of Mr. Vakarian?"

"It is tough to say Miss Lawson. Dr. Chakwas is performing admirably, but this is major surgery and I am not fully clear on Turian treatments. I would say that he is doing well for the situation."

"Prognosis?"

"84.1% chance of survival. Beyond that would be exaggerated estimation."

Miranda grunted. So he was probably going to survive. Great. "Alright EDI. Where is Commander Shepard now?"

"Unknown at this time Miss Lawson. I am not authorized to reveal that to you."

Miranda blinked slowly. What? "Please repeat that EDI. Where is Commander Shepard?"

"I am not authorized to reveal that to you Miss Lawson."

She gaped. What… oh of course. He figured out that he had more power than she did over EDI unless it was an emergency, which this did not qualify as. So he was messing with her. Great.

"EDI, where is Commander Shepard not right now?"

"Miss Lawson, I'm an advanced artificial intelligence, not a VI."

Miranda had already anticipated the answer however, and was moving to the door. "Locate Mr. Taylor please EDI."

"You're not authorized for that information Miss Lawson."

Miranda immediately went on high alert, realizing what was potentially going on. "Locate Miss Chambers and Mr. Massani, EDI."

"Miss Chambers is on the CIC , manning her post. I'm not authorized to reveal Mr. Massani's location to you."

That bastard. "I want Rolston and Hawthorne armed and ready at the airlock in 5 minutes. Now." She ran to the elevator, flying to the armoury as quickly as possible. It was locked down. "EDI, door. NOW."

"I am not authori-"

"Open this door now before I rip it off EDI," she gritted out through bared teeth. "And then I'll start ripping the ship apart, starting with you."

Several nearby crewmembers looked at her, shocked. She ignored them. She was almost positive that Shepard would have left orders that the armoury be unlocked if the ship was in imminent danger. She knew it because it's what she would have done, just as she should have predicted he would take off and freeze her out. Because it's what she would have done.

The door obediently opened in front of her. EDI obviously believed her threat – a good thing too, since Miranda was dead serious. It didn't take long for her to equip herself, nor for Rolston and Hawthorne. The two of them weren't exactly high class soldiers, but they did have basic Cerberus training, which was a good deal more than basic training from the Alliance. They were the only backup she had available. Thankfully, they didn't ask questions other than for what sort of armament they should have.

Moments later and they were marching off the ship, but had barely made it around the corner when she stopped short, Hawthorne clumsily slamming into her from behind.

Shepard was strolling across the plaza towards Aria's nightclub, 3 companions in tow. And one of them was a Salarian.

"That jackass," she muttered. She turned back to Hawthorne and Rolston. "Return to the ship. Tell no one anything."

They mumbled their assent before taking off quickly. She turned back to the nightclub, noting that Shepard had already disappeared inside. But the door was locked again and there was a long line.

She wasn't worried as she sauntered over to the guard, doing everything as she had been taught on how to use her body. The batarian wouldn't be attracted to her, she couldn't play that card. But he would have been told what to look for in other species. And she exuded sex in every way.

A short 30 second conversation, the slipping of 50 credits (she could have done it for free, it just would have taken longer), and she was in. She made her way down the wide hallway to the main club area, looking about for Shepard. Of course, the one thing she hadn't counted on was most of the males, both human and alien, turning to look at her, much as they had when she had first come in here. She cursed silently to herself. She didn't like the attention that brought, nor did she want to have to deal with unwanted advances.

On cue, she noticed that Jacob had appeared and was stepping up to her. The club tensed in expectation of him being shot down, but instead Miranda smiled at him and grabbed him by the arm, leading him towards the back of the bar.

The attention drifted off slowly at first, but much faster shortly thereafter. Miranda soon felt no eyes on her, and could at last turn angrily at Jacob. "What the hell are you doing Jacob?"

"My job. Shepard thought you may need some help to defuse the situation when you came in here alone. It seems he was right."

Miranda hid any reaction, but she was surprised and angry that he had seen her and still deliberately ignored her. "That's not what I meant Jacob. What is going on?"

"I don't know Miranda, he won't tell me much. He just said come on let's go, and I went. We got the Salarian though. Shepard went to do something for Aria, said he'd be back shortly."

Miranda huffed. "The idiot, what is he doing working with her. Come on, we'd better go bail his ass out."

Jacob didn't answer, though Miranda knew he wanted to protest her second half. The damn fool already believed everything he'd heard about Shepard. So much for him remaining skeptical as he said he would.

They headed for the lower club, entering just in time to see Shepard walking across the room towards them, grinning like a little kid. "Hey Lawson. Not bad, I didn't think you'd figure it out this fast." He brushed past her and sidled up to the bar, waving over the bartender.

Zaeed and Jacob hung back with the Salarian, leaving her reasonably alone at the bar with Shepard. "Listen John, what the hell are you doing?"

He smiled at her. "I just killed some thugs who were after a krogan. And now I'm going to enjoy a drink. I'd say I earned it after my day." The batarian bartender slid a drink over. Miranda didn't like the look of the batarian, but before she could say something, Shepard slung it back. "Want one?" he asked.

"Shepard, what are you p… Shepard?" Miranda stopped as she watched him react to the alcohol. He was turning pale rapidly. He slid off the stool, struggling to remain upright. "Shepard?" she asked again, as he lurched toward the door, barely staying upright. She chased after him as he stumbled into the connector lobby. He fell several times before collapsing as she settled next to him, pulling out her omni-tool and scanning him. A moment later and the salarian joined her, also scanning.

He was done with his diagnosis before her scan had even finished. "Poison, Batarian poltind. Antidote needed… death otherwise. Have some at lab, must move quickly."

Her own scan finished, and she flipped through the data quickly. "Correct on almost all accounts Mr. Solus. But he'll be fine in a matter of minutes."

The Salarian looked at her in shock. "I don't know who you are, but my conclusions are factual, human body cannot withstand Poltind. He has less than 15 minutes."

"Shepard is no ordinary man. Scan again Doctor."

The Salarian looked at her doubtfully, glancing up at Jacob who shrugged. Sighing, he obediently scanned again. Immediately the frown came over his face. "This is… not possible. The poison is already 50% eliminated. Estimate elimination to trace levels in another 97 seconds. Human body is incapable of such feats."

"As I said, he's not an ordinary man." She rose, offering her hand. "I'm Miranda Lawson. I already know you."

"Yes yes, I know of you. Shepard filled me in. And to pre-empt your concerns, you mustn't worry about me, I want the collectors stopped as well. I might not care about Cerberus, but I have no ill will towards you either."

Of course Shepard had filled him in on everything, trying to turn him against her. Mordin was an outsider, someone Shepard could trust, and he wanted help against Cerberus. Well, he could work on them if he wanted. She couldn't worry about it.

Shepard was already coming too, groaning as he pulled himself up. "Ugh. God damn't how much did I drink? I don't even remember any more after the first."

Miranda smirked at him. "Didn't realize you were such a light weight Shepard."

He frowned at her as his eyes became less glazed. "I'm not. No…" He suddenly seemed to jerk. "That son of a bitch." He was up in a moment, heading back towards the bar.

"This should be fun," she heard Zaeed mutter as he followed him. Miranda slowly sauntered after him, content to watch how Shepard dealt with the bartender. Zaeed was right, this should be fun.

* * *

Miranda entered the Normandy first, stopping just inside and letting the others pass one by one until Shepard, the last one, started to enter. She stepped in front of him. "We need to talk."

He shrugged at her. "Sure. What do you want to talk about? The weather?"

She stared at him, irked. "Not here, in private."

He shrugged. "Of course." He moved past her, heading for the elevator.

Miranda turned and followed, wary of the man. She had been impressed with his solution for the bartender. When the bartender offered him a free drink, he'd passed it off to a nearby batarian. The bartender had been forced to grab the drink back, at which time Shepard had pressed him about it. Shepard had the batarian on the ropes, but before he could do anything more, a nearby Turian had

gunned him down over the poisoning – not the first.

And she could tell that Shepard had hoped for just such an action. It took any blame out of his hands, but got rid of a threat. Very subtle. Exactly what she expected out of a man like Shepard.

Surprisingly, Shepard took them down to the main floor, to her office. When the door shut, he turned to her expectantly. "Well?"

"Don't bullshit me. Tell me exactly what you're doing and why. Let's not play any god damn games, let's just get right into it, ok?" She kept her voice mostly even, with her eyes focused solely on him. She avoided looking too cold, but she kept a bit of her cold feel about her. This needed to get settled.

"I don't play games. I fight wars, I fight battles, and I win. I always win."

What sort of an answer was that? "And? I can help you with that, but not if you just take off without me, not if you just do your own thing. I'm here to help you with your cause!"

He snorted. "We're treading over old ground here, starting to go around in circles. But we'll do this one more time Lawson. You are not here to help my cause. Not one bit. You're here to protect Cerberus. You're here for your own cause. So you are not my friend. You are not even my acquaintance. You are my enemy, and until that changes – if it even can change – I will continue to act as I see fit. And that includes replacing you as XO if I so choose to. Taking you off this mission if I can."

"What happened to giving us, to giving me, a chance?"

He scowled at her. "You blew it. If you don't know how, that's just more proof that you're my enemy. No Miss Lawson, as far as I'm concerned you won't be leaving this ship again. You will continue to handle logistics for the ship, but you're role as a member of my team is done."

She felt like someone had punched her in the gut. She had never experienced something like this before. It's not that she had never failed; when she was younger she failed all the time. No, this was something different. This was…

Shame. This was what shame felt like. She was ashamed that Shepard had basically removed her from command. That he had judged her and found her so wanting that he could not even deal with her. She couldn't lie to herself anymore; she wanted him to respect and admire her. He wanted him to recognize her worth. But he was tossing her aside.

She kept her face stone-solid. He couldn't know how she felt about this. That would show weakness.

"If that's..." her voice cracked. So much for not showing weakness. "If that's what you think is best for the mission, I'll have to accept it John. You're making a mistake. But it's yours to make."

He grunted. "Good. Anything else Miss Lawson?"

She wanted to start yelling and screaming at him about his idiocy, but that would accomplish nothing. No, she'd have to prove herself some other way. She had dug herself this hole, he had warned her repeatedly. And now she didn't know how she'd get out of it. "No sir."

He turned and stalked out. The Illusive Man wasn't going to like this. Not one bit. But there was nothing to be done for it now. Jacob could still give reports, but his were nowhere near as good as hers. She knew, she always read his.

Now she needed to re-earn Shepards trust. But how?

* * *

_Report 2743_

_Operative: Jacob Taylor_

_Mission: Acquisition of Salarian Mordin Solus_

_Summary: Entered quarantined area in search of Dr. Solus after Shepard avoided Operative Lawson. Shepard saved a Batarian which may earn humans some good will. Upon finding of Dr. Solus, was given task to distribute cure for plague as condition for recruitment. On the way to distribution, saved Dr. Solus' assistant, although killed Batarians who were threatening the assistant. Unlikely to be known that humans did it, should be minimal backlash. Uploaded cure after clearing out Vorcha. Collectors found to be at root of this plague, reasoning unknown, nor is any hard evidence available. Returned with Dr. Solus. Shepard was poisoned but survived and killed poisoner. Helped Asari by name of Aria with task. Returned to ship, no casualties._

_End Summary . Continue for full report._

* * *

Thanks for reading.


End file.
